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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: squash · hide · rush · present · band · wake · hand · board

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. board — to get on
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. band — a music group
  7. squash — the sport
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. hand — in cards
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. present — a gift
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. wake — a trail
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. band — a ring
  18. present — there
  19. squash — to crush
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. present — the time now
  22. board — a committee
  23. hand — help
  24. hide — animal skin

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