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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: chest · can · race · racket · rush · craft · tear · squash

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. craft — boats
  3. can — to be able to
  4. tear — from crying
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. chest — of your body
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. can — a tin
  11. race — humankind
  12. squash — the sport
  13. tear — to rip
  14. tear — from crying
  15. craft — a skill
  16. rush — hurry
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. can — a tin
  19. race — a contest
  20. squash — to crush
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. race — the arms race
  23. chest — of your body
  24. chest — a box

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