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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: kid · fork · craft · racket · row · swing · squash · land

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. row — to paddle
  3. row — a line
  4. swing — to play on
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. craft — boats
  8. kid — to tease
  9. land — a country
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. squash — the sport
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. craft — a skill
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. fork — in a road
  17. swing — in golf
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. swing — music
  21. land — to come down
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. land — ground
  24. kid — child

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