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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: rock · chair · swing · race · wave · perch · squash · straw

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  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 vegetable
  2. race — a contest
  3. race — the arms race
  4. rock — music
  5. perch — the fish
  6. squash — the sport
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. race — humankind
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. rock — a stone
  15. swing — in golf
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. swing — music
  18. squash — to crush
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. chair — a leader
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. wave — of the sea
  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