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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: straw · squash · kid · bark · bulb · date · chip · can

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. kid — to tease
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. kid — child
  5. can — a tin
  6. can — a tin
  7. squash — to crush
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. chip — for betting
  11. bulb — for light
  12. chip — to eat
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. can — to be able to
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. date — the fruit
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. bark — to shout
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. bulb — for light

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