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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. suit — to fit
  3. squash — the sport
  4. shower — to wash
  5. swing — to play on
  6. squash — to crush
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. shower — rain
  9. suit — clothes
  10. date — the fruit
  11. swing — music
  12. wax — to grow
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. ground — crushed
  20. ground — the earth
  21. swing — in golf
  22. suit — in cards
  23. ground — a position
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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