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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: rash · squash · land · club · lean · cell · pitch · kid

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. kid — child
  4. lean — thin
  5. kid — to tease
  6. club — for dancing
  7. cell — in biology
  8. lean — to bend
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. pitch — completely
  12. squash — the sport
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. club — for golf
  15. land — to come down
  16. cell — a phone
  17. land — ground
  18. squash — to crush
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. land — a country
  21. rash — hasty
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. club — a group
  24. rash — a series

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