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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. perch — the fish
  3. ground — a position
  4. ground — the earth
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. season — of the year
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. shower — rain
  11. season — in sport
  12. cap — a lid
  13. shower — to wash
  14. cap — of ice
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. cap — a hat

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