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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  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 — the vegetable
  2. pop — soda
  3. charge — electricity
  4. net — for catching
  5. net — in sport
  6. pop — to visit
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. squash — the sport
  9. charge — in control
  10. net — after costs
  11. squash — to crush
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. charge — a price
  14. plane — a tool
  15. pop — music
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. chip — for betting
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. chip — to eat
  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