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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 120 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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. squash — to crush
  3. season — in sport
  4. present — a gift
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. wake — a trail
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. squash — the sport
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. swing — to play on
  12. season — of the year
  13. content — happy
  14. content — the amount
  15. present — there
  16. stem — to come from
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. craft — boats
  20. swing — in golf
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. present — the time now
  23. swing — music
  24. craft — a skill

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