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

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. rash — hasty
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. rash — a series
  5. bound — tied together
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. squash — the sport
  8. land — to come down
  9. bound — obliged
  10. cap — a lid
  11. squash — to crush
  12. land — a country
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. cap — a hat
  15. bound — certain
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. cap — of ice
  18. squash — the vegetable

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