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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: rule · squash · board · mine · swing · roll · capital · cue

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. rule — a law
  4. capital — money
  5. cue — a hint
  6. mine — for digging
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. rule — government
  9. roll — a cake
  10. swing — music
  11. cue — a signal
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. roll — a list
  14. squash — to crush
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. board — to get on
  17. swing — to play on
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. cue — for pool
  20. capital — a city
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. board — a committee
  23. squash — the sport
  24. swing — in golf

Multiple-meaning words list

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

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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