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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. charge — a price
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. field — farmland
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. ball — a dance
  7. sharp — clever
  8. squash — the sport
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. prune — to trim
  12. prune — to trim
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. charge — in control
  15. ball — a great time
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. squash — to crush
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. field — a subject
  22. field — for sport
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. charge — electricity

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