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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: tear · march · degree · lash · foot · pit · squash · ground

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. tear — to rip
  3. pit — in a race
  4. ground — the earth
  5. march — the month
  6. tear — from crying
  7. degree — temperature
  8. foot — a measure
  9. march — music
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. ground — crushed
  12. degree — an amount
  13. pit — a hole
  14. squash — the sport
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. ground — a position
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. degree — from a university
  21. tear — from crying
  22. squash — to crush
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. march — the month

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