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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: stand · bat · bore · wind · kick · squash · land · prune

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. bore — to drill
  3. squash — the sport
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. kick — in football
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. land — to come down
  8. land — a country
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. wind — moving air
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. prune — to trim
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. bore — to tire
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. stand — to bear
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. wind — moving air
  22. prune — to trim
  23. land — ground
  24. bat — the animal

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