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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 120 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 keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. dip — to sink
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. game — a match
  6. season — in sport
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. season — of the year
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. squash — to crush
  13. track — a path
  14. foot — a measure
  15. track — a song
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. game — wild animals
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. squash — the sport
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. straw — dry grass

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