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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. capital — a city
  6. fall — to drop
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wind — moving air
  10. fall — to drop
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. last — finally
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. capital — money
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. chair — a leader
  17. squash — to crush
  18. roll — a list
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. last — to go on
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. roll — a cake
  23. fall — the season
  24. last — final

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