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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: swing · tear · kid · perch · squash · object · stem · rule

  1. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. swing — to play on
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. object — to protest
  5. rule — government
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. swing — music
  8. perch — the fish
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — to tease
  11. kid — child
  12. rule — a law
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. tear — from crying
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. stem — to come from
  17. squash — the sport
  18. object — an aim
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. tear — from crying
  21. squash — to crush
  22. object — a thing
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. tear — to rip

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