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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. squash — the sport
  3. court — of law
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. present — the time now
  6. squash — to crush
  7. wound — an injury
  8. lean — to bend
  9. present — a gift
  10. court — of a king
  11. mate — a partner
  12. wound — an injury
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. mate — a friend
  15. lean — thin
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. present — there
  19. mate — to breed
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. court — for sport
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. temple — a place of worship

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