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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. pop — to visit
  3. wound — an injury
  4. march — music
  5. staff — employees
  6. squash — to crush
  7. pop — soda
  8. march — the month
  9. wound — an injury
  10. net — for catching
  11. pop — music
  12. staff — a stick
  13. squash — the sport
  14. net — after costs
  15. net — in sport
  16. staff — employees
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. march — the month

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