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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 president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. field — farmland
  3. game — wild animals
  4. field — for sport
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. game — a match
  7. mate — a friend
  8. last — to go on
  9. last — final
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. last — finally
  12. chip — for betting
  13. ball — a great time
  14. mate — a partner
  15. chip — to eat
  16. squash — the sport
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. field — a subject
  20. ball — a dance
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. mate — to breed
  24. chip — in a computer

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