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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. root — the cause
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. swing — to play on
  5. cold — not warm
  6. squash — to crush
  7. race — humankind
  8. root — of a word
  9. track — to keep track
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. swing — in golf
  12. cold — an illness
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. race — the arms race
  15. track — a path
  16. swing — music
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. race — a contest
  20. track — a song
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. squash — the sport
  23. root — of a plant
  24. leaves — of a tree

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