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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: row · snap · press · mate · pit · rush · temple · squash

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. press — a publisher
  4. rush — hurry
  5. squash — to crush
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. mate — a partner
  8. snap — to click
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. row — a line
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. press — to push
  13. row — to paddle
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. mate — a friend
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. squash — the sport
  19. mate — to breed
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. pit — in a race
  22. press — newspapers
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. squash — the vegetable

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