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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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. march — the month
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. foot — a measure
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. march — music
  7. squash — the sport
  8. last — final
  9. ground — crushed
  10. squash — to crush
  11. ground — the earth
  12. last — finally
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. roll — a cake
  15. march — the month
  16. last — to go on
  17. key — for a lock
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. cap — a hat
  20. key — the most important part
  21. roll — a list
  22. key — in music
  23. ground — a position
  24. cap — a lid

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