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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. foot — a measure
  3. bass — low music
  4. ground — the earth
  5. ground — a position
  6. deal — to handle
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. ground — crushed
  9. squash — to crush
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. bass — the fish
  18. rush — hurry
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. kid — child
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. stand — to bear
  23. squash — the sport
  24. stand — on your feet

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