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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: squash · drill · stock · spring · bass · pound · hide · content

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. content — happy
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. drill — army training
  5. bass — low music
  6. spring — of water
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. pound — a weight
  9. drill — a practice
  10. spring — a coil
  11. bass — the fish
  12. spring — the season
  13. content — the amount
  14. squash — to crush
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. stock — goods
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. stock — shares
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. drill — the tool
  24. bass — the instrument

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