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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. squash — to crush
  7. ground — crushed
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. squash — the sport
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. season — in sport
  13. ground — the earth
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. chair — a leader
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. season — of the year
  19. ground — a position
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — an illness
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. nail — on a finger

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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