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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. ground — a position
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. bat — the animal
  6. court — for sport
  7. spell — letters
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. ground — crushed
  10. wax — to grow
  11. spell — a short time
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. stem — to come from
  18. spell — magic
  19. court — of law
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. squash — the sport
  22. court — of a king
  23. squash — to crush
  24. ground — the earth

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