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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: mine · kid · press · squash · race · last · lash · ruler

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. race — humankind
  3. kid — to tease
  4. squash — to crush
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. last — to go on
  8. press — newspapers
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. kid — child
  11. race — a contest
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. mine — for digging
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. squash — the sport
  17. press — to push
  18. race — the arms race
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. press — a publisher
  23. last — final
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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