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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. sharp — clever
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. season — of the year
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. degree — from a university
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. fall — the season
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. pass — a permit
  14. fall — to drop
  15. degree — an amount
  16. squash — the sport
  17. fall — to drop
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. degree — temperature
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. squash — to crush
  22. stem — to come from
  23. season — in sport
  24. sharp — exactly

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