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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. cap — a lid
  6. file — a document
  7. object — to protest
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. root — the cause
  11. object — an aim
  12. object — a thing
  13. root — of a word
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. cap — a hat
  16. file — a line of people
  17. root — of a plant
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. file — a tool
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. cap — of ice
  23. ground — the earth
  24. ground — a position

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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