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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. squash — the sport
  3. track — a path
  4. charge — in control
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. roll — a cake
  7. degree — temperature
  8. charge — electricity
  9. track — to keep track
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. hand — in cards
  12. squash — to crush
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. degree — from a university
  15. track — a song
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. spell — letters
  18. spell — a short time
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. charge — a price
  21. roll — a list
  22. degree — an amount
  23. spell — magic
  24. hand — help

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