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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. content — happy
  3. court — for sport
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. court — of a king
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. squash — the sport
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. rash — a series
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. key — in music
  12. content — the amount
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. key — for a lock
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. key — the most important part
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. court — of law
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. rash — hasty
  21. squash — to crush
  22. branch — a division
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. cabinet — ministers

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