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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. season — of the year
  3. chest — of your body
  4. squash — the sport
  5. lean — thin
  6. pop — to visit
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. chest — of your body
  9. season — in sport
  10. race — a contest
  11. lean — to bend
  12. toast — bread
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. ground — crushed
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. race — humankind
  17. chest — a box
  18. pop — soda
  19. race — the arms race
  20. squash — to crush
  21. pop — music
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. ground — the earth
  24. season — to add flavour

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