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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  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 vegetable
  2. suit — in cards
  3. mug — a face
  4. last — finally
  5. last — final
  6. squash — the sport
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. last — to go on
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. squash — to crush
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. mug — to rob
  14. capital — a city
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. suit — to fit
  18. mug — a cup
  19. suit — clothes
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. capital — money
  22. pitch — completely
  23. pitch — a sports field
  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