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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. squash — to crush
  4. bound — tied together
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. ground — the earth
  8. charge — electricity
  9. chip — to eat
  10. ground — a position
  11. ground — crushed
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. charge — in control
  14. bound — obliged
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. cell — a phone
  18. charge — a price
  19. chip — for betting
  20. bound — certain
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. cell — in biology
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. perch — the fish

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