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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. squash — the sport
  7. season — in sport
  8. wound — an injury
  9. date — the fruit
  10. stem — to come from
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. season — of the year
  15. squash — to crush
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. foot — a measure
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. pound — a weight
  24. pound — for dogs

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