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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 120 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 · bay · squash · last · ground · content · chip · bear

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. tear — to rip
  4. chip — for betting
  5. tear — from crying
  6. chip — to eat
  7. tear — from crying
  8. content — happy
  9. last — final
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — finally
  12. squash — the sport
  13. bear — the animal
  14. ground — a position
  15. content — the amount
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. squash — to crush
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. ground — the earth
  23. bear — the animal
  24. ground — crushed

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