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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. ground — a position
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. stand — to bear
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. rock — music
  9. game — wild animals
  10. spell — letters
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. game — a match
  14. squash — the sport
  15. ground — crushed
  16. rock — a stone
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. wound — an injury
  20. spell — magic
  21. squash — to crush
  22. wound — an injury
  23. spell — a short time
  24. ground — the earth

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