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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 116 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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. tear — from crying
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. prune — to trim
  5. ground — a position
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. squash — the sport
  8. pitch — completely
  9. tear — to rip
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. ground — crushed
  14. squash — to crush
  15. ground — the earth
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. pass — a permit
  20. prune — to trim
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. tear — from crying
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. lash — to lash out

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