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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 potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. spell — magic
  3. mug — a face
  4. mug — to rob
  5. last — to go on
  6. spell — letters
  7. spring — of water
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. squash — to crush
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. date — the fruit
  12. last — finally
  13. squash — the sport
  14. last — final
  15. mug — a cup
  16. field — a subject
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. spring — the season
  19. field — for sport
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. chip — for betting
  22. field — farmland
  23. spell — a short time
  24. spring — a coil

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