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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. charge — in control
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. charge — electricity
  6. charge — a price
  7. ground — a position
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. squash — to crush
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. ground — the earth
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. squash — the sport
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. race — a contest
  18. ground — crushed
  19. race — humankind
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. race — the arms race
  22. lie — to recline
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. wound — an injury

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