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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 116 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: hand · squash · present · mate · pass · bowl · calf · cold

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. squash — to crush
  4. present — a gift
  5. hand — in cards
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. squash — the sport
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. cold — an illness
  11. mate — to breed
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. pass — a permit
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. mate — a friend
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. cold — not warm
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. mate — a partner
  21. hand — help
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. present — there
  24. calf — of the leg

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