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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 120 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 do anything ________________.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. squash — the sport
  4. land — a country
  5. fine — all right
  6. sharp — clever
  7. squash — to crush
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. last — to go on
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. perch — the fish
  17. pitch — completely
  18. last — finally
  19. land — to come down
  20. fine — high quality
  21. land — ground
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. last — final
  24. rash — a series

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