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

  1. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. prune — to trim
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. kid — to tease
  6. dip — to sink
  7. mine — for digging
  8. scale — size or range
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. kid — child
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. prune — to trim
  15. ground — the earth
  16. ground — a position
  17. ground — crushed
  18. dip — to dunk

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