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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. squash — to crush
  3. wound — an injury
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. squash — the sport
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. mate — a partner
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. mate — to breed
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. toast — bread
  15. land — ground
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. deal — to handle
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. mate — a friend
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. wound — an injury
  23. land — a country
  24. squash — the vegetable

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