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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: bowl · row · pit · straw · track · pass · cap · squash

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. squash — to crush
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. track — a path
  9. track — a song
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. cap — a hat
  12. cap — a lid
  13. squash — the sport
  14. track — to keep track
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. pass — a permit
  17. row — to paddle
  18. row — a line
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. pit — a hole
  24. pit — in a race

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