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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 120 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: hand · key · board · squash · wake · perch · ground · rush

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. ground — crushed
  3. board — to get on
  4. board — a committee
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. squash — the sport
  8. hand — in cards
  9. key — for a lock
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. ground — a position
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. ground — the earth
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. squash — to crush
  18. perch — the fish
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. wake — a trail
  21. key — the most important part
  22. key — in music
  23. rush — hurry
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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