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

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. face — to point toward
  4. ground — the earth
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. root — of a plant
  7. shower — rain
  8. rash — hasty
  9. ground — a position
  10. file — a document
  11. file — a tool
  12. rash — a series
  13. shower — to wash
  14. root — of a word
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. saw — the tool
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. saw — the tool
  20. root — the cause
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. face — part of the head
  23. face — to confront
  24. file — a line of people

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