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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: club · squash · bay · wake · spell · kid · chest · toast

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. squash — to crush
  5. club — a group
  6. club — for golf
  7. chest — of your body
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. club — for dancing
  10. wake — a trail
  11. toast — bread
  12. squash — the sport
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. spell — magic
  15. kid — to tease
  16. spell — letters
  17. chest — a box
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. spell — a short time
  20. kid — child
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. toast — the most admired
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. chest — of your body

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