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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: squash · wake · land · rush · arm · press · pitcher · march

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. rush — hurry
  3. march — the month
  4. wake — a trail
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. land — ground
  7. press — newspapers
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. land — to come down
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. press — to push
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. land — a country
  16. squash — to crush
  17. press — a publisher
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. march — the month
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. march — music
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. wake — before a funeral

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