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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
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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: can · squash · march · last · press · hand · row · arm

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. can — to be able to
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. row — a line
  5. press — a publisher
  6. row — to paddle
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. last — finally
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. march — the month
  11. hand — in cards
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. can — a tin
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. last — final
  16. hand — help
  17. can — a tin
  18. march — music
  19. squash — the sport
  20. squash — to crush
  21. press — newspapers
  22. march — the month
  23. press — to push
  24. arm — part of the body

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