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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. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. prune — to trim
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. race — a contest
  6. file — a document
  7. ground — crushed
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. face — to confront
  10. ball — a great time
  11. race — the arms race
  12. ball — a dance
  13. chair — a leader
  14. prune — to trim
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. file — a tool
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. ground — the earth
  19. file — a line of people
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. ground — a position
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. face — part of the head
  24. race — humankind

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