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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. field — for sport
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. squash — to crush
  6. field — farmland
  7. cap — a hat
  8. ground — a position
  9. ground — crushed
  10. cap — a lid
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. rash — hasty
  13. rash — a series
  14. pass — a permit
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. field — a subject
  18. game — a match
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. cap — of ice
  22. squash — the sport
  23. ground — the earth
  24. game — wild animals

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