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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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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: bay · wind · dip · season · squash · content · mine · vault

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. wind — moving air
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. vault — a safe
  7. squash — to crush
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. content — happy
  12. squash — the sport
  13. content — the amount
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. wind — moving air
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. mine — for digging
  19. dip — to sink
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. season — of the year
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. season — in sport

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