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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. key — in music
  5. can — a tin
  6. land — to come down
  7. cell — in biology
  8. net — for catching
  9. squash — to crush
  10. can — a tin
  11. squash — the sport
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. key — for a lock
  14. net — after costs
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. net — in sport
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. fork — in a road
  19. land — ground
  20. land — a country
  21. can — to be able to
  22. roll — a list
  23. cell — a phone
  24. key — the most important part

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