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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
468
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: bass · field · capital · wave · spell · squash · kid · object

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. field — for sport
  4. bass — low music
  5. spell — a short time
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. capital — money
  8. spell — letters
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. field — farmland
  11. kid — child
  12. squash — to crush
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. object — an aim
  16. spell — magic
  17. object — a thing
  18. kid — to tease
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. bass — the fish
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. field — a subject
  23. squash — the sport
  24. capital — a city

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