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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: pit · roll · lash · mate · chest · squash · wind · perch

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. wind — moving air
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. chest — a box
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. pit — a hole
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. squash — to crush
  9. chest — of your body
  10. roll — a cake
  11. pit — in a race
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. chest — of your body
  15. perch — the fish
  16. wind — moving air
  17. mate — a friend
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. roll — a list
  21. mate — to breed
  22. squash — the sport
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. mate — a partner

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