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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. bound — obliged
  3. squash — to crush
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. land — to come down
  6. ground — the earth
  7. ground — a position
  8. season — in sport
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. bound — tied together
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. land — ground
  13. stand — to bear
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. ground — crushed
  16. squash — the sport
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. season — of the year
  20. stem — to come from
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. land — a country
  24. bound — certain

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