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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. last — finally
  3. degree — temperature
  4. last — to go on
  5. degree — an amount
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. last — final
  8. band — a music group
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. spring — of water
  11. track — to keep track
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. track — a song
  14. spring — a coil
  15. track — a path
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. squash — to crush
  18. spring — the season
  19. degree — from a university
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. squash — the sport
  22. band — a ring
  23. fork — in a road
  24. hide — to keep secret

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