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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. wake — a trail
  3. rash — a series
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. degree — temperature
  6. field — for sport
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. ground — crushed
  9. roll — a list
  10. squash — to crush
  11. ground — a position
  12. ground — the earth
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. squash — the sport
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. field — farmland
  20. degree — an amount
  21. field — a subject
  22. rash — hasty
  23. degree — from a university
  24. roll — a cake

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