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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. season — of the year
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. cold — an illness
  9. stem — to come from
  10. net — for catching
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. net — after costs
  13. rash — a series
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. squash — to crush
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. cold — not warm
  21. net — in sport
  22. squash — the sport
  23. rash — hasty
  24. season — in sport

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