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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: rest · bark · squash · cap · plane · ball · hand · pitcher

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. plane — a tool
  4. cap — a hat
  5. hand — in cards
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. squash — the sport
  11. rest — what's left
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. cap — a lid
  15. rest — a break
  16. rest — what's left
  17. ball — a great time
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. ball — a dance
  20. cap — of ice
  21. bark — to shout
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. hand — help

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