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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. ground — the earth
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. key — the most important part
  5. root — the cause
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. tear — to rip
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. rash — a series
  10. key — in music
  11. root — of a plant
  12. squash — the sport
  13. file — a tool
  14. root — of a word
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — from crying
  17. rash — hasty
  18. key — for a lock
  19. ground — a position
  20. file — a line of people
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. file — a document
  23. ground — crushed
  24. squash — the vegetable

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