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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. ground — crushed
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. saw — the tool
  6. cue — a signal
  7. ground — a position
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. mark — a grade
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. ground — the earth
  12. squash — the sport
  13. season — of the year
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. mark — a trace
  16. saw — the tool
  17. season — in sport
  18. squash — to crush
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. cell — a phone
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. cell — in biology
  23. cue — for pool
  24. cue — a hint

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