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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: fork · bass · squash · pop · lean · race · roll · rash

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. roll — a cake
  4. lean — thin
  5. race — humankind
  6. squash — the sport
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. pop — music
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. race — the arms race
  11. bass — the fish
  12. rash — a series
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. rash — hasty
  15. squash — to crush
  16. pop — soda
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. pop — to visit
  20. bass — low music
  21. fork — in a road
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. race — a contest
  24. roll — a list

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