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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: rush · squash · content · tear · pitcher · fall · drill · can

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. rush — hurry
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. squash — to crush
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. fall — to drop
  8. tear — from crying
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. drill — army training
  12. content — happy
  13. drill — the tool
  14. fall — the season
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. fall — to drop
  17. can — to be able to
  18. can — a tin
  19. tear — from crying
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. squash — the sport
  22. content — the amount
  23. can — a tin
  24. drill — a practice

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