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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: bulb · calf · deal · march · race · pitcher · branch · squash

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. march — music
  4. race — humankind
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. squash — the sport
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. squash — to crush
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. race — a contest
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. race — the arms race
  17. deal — to handle
  18. march — the month
  19. bulb — for light
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. branch — a division
  22. bulb — for light
  23. march — the month
  24. calf — a young animal

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