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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. ground — a position
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. wind — moving air
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. mark — a grade
  9. row — a line
  10. row — to paddle
  11. ground — crushed
  12. squash — to crush
  13. mark — a trace
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. pit — a hole
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. ground — the earth
  19. pit — in a race
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. squash — the sport
  23. saw — the tool
  24. squash — the vegetable

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