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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: cold · squash · bay · bank · charge · land · last · ground

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. squash — to crush
  3. ground — a position
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. bank — for money
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. squash — the sport
  9. bank — of a river
  10. ground — the earth
  11. last — to go on
  12. ground — crushed
  13. land — a country
  14. cold — an illness
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. cold — not warm
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. charge — a price
  19. land — ground
  20. land — to come down
  21. charge — electricity
  22. bank — for money
  23. last — final
  24. charge — in control

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