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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: nail · cold · rest · snap · date · squash · arm · bowl

  1. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. rest — a break
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. rest — what's left
  11. cold — not warm
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. snap — to click
  14. squash — to crush
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. date — the fruit
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. cold — an illness
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. squash — the sport
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. rest — what's left

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