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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. season — of the year
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. squash — to crush
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. court — of law
  7. court — of a king
  8. squash — the sport
  9. rest — what's left
  10. tear — to rip
  11. chip — to eat
  12. chip — for betting
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. rest — what's left
  17. season — in sport
  18. mine — for digging
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. court — for sport
  22. tear — from crying
  23. rest — a break
  24. tear — from crying

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