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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 · wind · cold · lash · bay · mug · pound · spell

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. cold — not warm
  3. spell — a short time
  4. pound — a weight
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. mug — a cup
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. wind — moving air
  9. cold — an illness
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. wind — moving air
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. spell — letters
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. squash — the sport
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. spell — magic
  21. squash — to crush
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. mug — to rob
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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