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

  1. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. tear — to rip
  3. squash — to crush
  4. club — a group
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cold — an illness
  7. club — for golf
  8. chip — to eat
  9. content — happy
  10. club — for dancing
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. content — the amount
  13. tear — from crying
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. cold — not warm
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. chip — for betting
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. foot — a measure
  22. squash — the sport
  23. stand — to bear
  24. content — videos and posts

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