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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: arm · wind · safe · season · squash · pitch · present · tear

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. present — a gift
  3. squash — the sport
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. present — the time now
  6. tear — to rip
  7. season — in sport
  8. wind — moving air
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wind — moving air
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. squash — to crush
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. pitch — completely
  17. tear — from crying
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. tear — from crying
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. present — there
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. season — to add flavour

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