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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.

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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'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. fork — in a road
  5. wind — moving air
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. track — a path
  8. chip — for betting
  9. kick — in football
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. track — to keep track
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. chip — to eat
  14. track — a song
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. wake — a trail
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. squash — to crush
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. bat — the animal
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wake — before a funeral

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