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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: swing · bear · last · temple · squash · mark · content · calf

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. bear — the animal
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. mark — a trace
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. content — the amount
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. squash — to crush
  11. last — final
  12. bear — the animal
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. last — to go on
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. swing — music
  19. swing — in golf
  20. content — happy
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. last — finally
  23. mark — a grade
  24. swing — to play on

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