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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 116 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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. squash — to crush
  3. scale — size or range
  4. spring — the season
  5. spring — a coil
  6. staff — a stick
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. bat — the animal
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. season — of the year
  11. fall — to drop
  12. staff — employees
  13. scale — in music
  14. fall — the season
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. staff — employees
  18. season — in sport
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. fall — to drop
  21. spring — of water
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. squash — the sport
  24. bat — for baseball

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