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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. ground — a position
  3. branch — a division
  4. game — wild animals
  5. row — a line
  6. mark — a grade
  7. row — to paddle
  8. ball — a dance
  9. game — a match
  10. ground — the earth
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. ground — crushed
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. stand — to bear
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. ball — a great time
  17. squash — the sport
  18. squash — to crush
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. mark — a trace
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. ball — a round shape

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