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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. lean — to bend
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. tube — a container
  5. cap — a lid
  6. lean — thin
  7. land — to come down
  8. tube — the underground
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. cap — of ice
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. cap — a hat
  15. land — a country
  16. deal — to handle
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. hand — in cards
  19. ground — the earth
  20. land — ground
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. hand — help
  23. ground — crushed
  24. trunk — of a tree

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