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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. squash — to crush
  3. ground — crushed
  4. cap — a hat
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. swing — music
  7. swing — to play on
  8. cap — a lid
  9. ground — a position
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. mark — a trace
  13. ground — the earth
  14. tear — from crying
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. tear — from crying
  17. swing — in golf
  18. fork — in a road
  19. cap — of ice
  20. squash — the sport
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. mark — a grade
  23. capital — a city
  24. capital — money

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