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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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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: mine · bear · squash · wound · ball · snap · spell · hide

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. squash — the sport
  4. squash — to crush
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. ball — a great time
  7. spell — a short time
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. mine — for digging
  12. bear — the animal
  13. spell — letters
  14. ball — a dance
  15. spell — magic
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. wound — an injury
  18. snap — to click
  19. bear — the animal
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. wound — an injury
  24. hide — animal skin

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