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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. last — finally
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. stock — goods
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. scale — size or range
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. stock — shares
  11. squash — to crush
  12. season — in sport
  13. season — of the year
  14. land — a country
  15. wake — a trail
  16. last — to go on
  17. bass — low music
  18. scale — in music
  19. squash — the sport
  20. land — to come down
  21. bass — the fish
  22. land — ground
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. last — final

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