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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: jam · bore · stand · kid · squash · lash · roll · tear

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. kid — to tease
  3. bore — to tire
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. squash — the sport
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. tear — to rip
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. stand — to bear
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. tear — from crying
  14. roll — a list
  15. squash — to crush
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. kid — child
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. tear — from crying
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. bore — to drill

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