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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: spring · ball · wind · rush · mug · firm · squash · drill

  1. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. ball — a great time
  3. wind — moving air
  4. ball — a dance
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. drill — a practice
  7. mug — a face
  8. drill — the tool
  9. wind — moving air
  10. drill — army training
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. mug — a cup
  13. firm — a company
  14. squash — the sport
  15. mug — to rob
  16. spring — a coil
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. spring — of water
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. firm — decided
  21. spring — the season
  22. rush — hurry
  23. firm — steady
  24. squash — to crush

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com