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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. key — in music
  3. can — to be able to
  4. bat — the animal
  5. tear — to rip
  6. swing — in golf
  7. key — for a lock
  8. tear — from crying
  9. swing — to play on
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. can — a tin
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. date — the fruit
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. ground — a position
  17. swing — music
  18. squash — to crush
  19. squash — the sport
  20. ground — the earth
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. can — a tin
  23. key — the most important part
  24. tear — from crying

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