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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: mate · squash · lash · cold · row · jam · snap · spell

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. snap — to click
  4. row — a line
  5. mate — a friend
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. cold — an illness
  9. squash — the sport
  10. mate — to breed
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. spell — magic
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. cold — not warm
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. spell — letters
  20. mate — a partner
  21. row — to paddle
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. squash — to crush

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