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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. squash — the sport
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. rock — music
  6. file — a tool
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. rock — a stone
  9. capital — money
  10. wound — an injury
  11. mark — a trace
  12. capital — a city
  13. mark — a grade
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. file — a line of people
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. file — a document
  21. wound — an injury
  22. lean — to bend
  23. squash — to crush
  24. lean — thin

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