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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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Word bank
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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: game · pop · row · pound · season · squash · march · bulb

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. pop — soda
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. march — music
  5. season — of the year
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. pound — a weight
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. pop — music
  10. squash — to crush
  11. game — wild animals
  12. season — in sport
  13. row — a line
  14. march — the month
  15. game — a match
  16. squash — the sport
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. bulb — for light
  20. march — the month
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. bulb — for light
  23. row — to paddle
  24. bulb — of a plant

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