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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: lean · track · wake · chest · ground · squash

  1. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. ground — a position
  4. chest — of your body
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. lean — thin
  8. track — a song
  9. chest — of your body
  10. chest — a box
  11. squash — to crush
  12. squash — the sport
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. ground — crushed
  15. ground — the earth
  16. track — to keep track
  17. track — a path
  18. lean — to bend

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