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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
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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: wind · squash · bowl · kick · drill · pop · stock · cue

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. squash — the sport
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. stock — goods
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wind — moving air
  12. cue — a signal
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. stock — shares
  15. cue — for pool
  16. drill — a practice
  17. squash — to crush
  18. pop — soda
  19. wind — moving air
  20. cue — a hint
  21. pop — music
  22. drill — the tool
  23. drill — army training
  24. kick — in football

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