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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 116 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 · ground · clip · can · land · degree · nail · fan

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. clip — for paper
  3. squash — to crush
  4. squash — the sport
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. land — a country
  10. can — a tin
  11. clip — a video
  12. can — a tin
  13. degree — an amount
  14. degree — temperature
  15. ground — the earth
  16. degree — from a university
  17. ground — crushed
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. clip — to cut
  20. land — to come down
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. land — ground
  23. ground — a position
  24. can — to be able to

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