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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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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: kid · ground · lean · squash · cap · mouse · stick · fall

  1. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. lean — to bend
  5. fall — to drop
  6. cap — of ice
  7. cap — a hat
  8. squash — the sport
  9. ground — a position
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. cap — a lid
  12. fall — to drop
  13. ground — the earth
  14. squash — to crush
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. kid — child
  18. kid — to tease
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. fall — the season
  21. lean — thin
  22. ground — crushed
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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