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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: deal · squash · mate · tear · cabinet · rash · mouse · chair

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. mate — a friend
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. tear — from crying
  5. squash — to crush
  6. rash — hasty
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. tear — from crying
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. squash — the sport
  16. deal — to handle
  17. mate — a partner
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. chair — a leader
  21. rash — a series
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. mate — to breed
  24. tear — to rip

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