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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: squash · club · roll · game · ground · tube · rest · date

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. club — for dancing
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. club — a group
  6. tube — the underground
  7. rest — what's left
  8. tube — a container
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. ground — the earth
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. ground — a position
  14. roll — a list
  15. club — for golf
  16. game — a match
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. date — the fruit
  19. rest — what's left
  20. squash — to crush
  21. ground — crushed
  22. roll — a cake
  23. squash — the sport
  24. rest — a break

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