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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: patient · charge · content · squash · swing · saw · tear · press

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. charge — in control
  3. squash — the sport
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. saw — the tool
  6. charge — a price
  7. tear — to rip
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. charge — electricity
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. swing — music
  12. tear — from crying
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. content — happy
  15. content — the amount
  16. press — to push
  17. press — a publisher
  18. squash — to crush
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. tear — from crying
  21. press — newspapers
  22. saw — the tool
  23. swing — in golf
  24. swing — to play on

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