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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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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: rush · game · squash · kid · trunk · bulb · date · chip

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. kid — to tease
  3. game — a match
  4. bulb — for light
  5. game — wild animals
  6. bulb — for light
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. chip — to eat
  11. rush — hurry
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. chip — for betting
  14. kid — child
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. squash — to crush
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. date — the fruit
  22. squash — the sport
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. rush — a thrill

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