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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · cap · rash · land · hide · field · fall · straw

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. fall — the season
  6. cap — a hat
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. rash — hasty
  9. land — to come down
  10. field — farmland
  11. cap — a lid
  12. land — ground
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. field — a subject
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. squash — the sport
  18. squash — to crush
  19. cap — of ice
  20. land — a country
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fall — to drop
  23. field — for sport
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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