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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. key — the most important part
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — final
  7. tear — from crying
  8. key — in music
  9. season — of the year
  10. squash — to crush
  11. key — for a lock
  12. tear — to rip
  13. saw — the tool
  14. tube — a container
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. last — finally
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. season — in sport
  20. saw — the tool
  21. squash — the sport
  22. tube — the underground
  23. wake — a trail
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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