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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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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: squash · chest · drill · can · tear · deal · band · pit

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. pit — in a race
  4. pit — a hole
  5. tear — from crying
  6. band — a music group
  7. drill — army training
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. chest — of your body
  10. deal — to handle
  11. tear — to rip
  12. can — a tin
  13. chest — a box
  14. band — a ring
  15. squash — the sport
  16. drill — the tool
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. drill — a practice
  19. chest — of your body
  20. can — a tin
  21. squash — to crush
  22. tear — from crying
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. deal — a big deal

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