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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. club — a group
  4. ground — a position
  5. present — a gift
  6. present — there
  7. club — for golf
  8. net — in sport
  9. present — the time now
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. kick — in football
  12. root — of a plant
  13. root — the cause
  14. ground — crushed
  15. wake — a trail
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip
  19. root — of a word
  20. net — after costs
  21. club — for dancing
  22. tear — from crying
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. ground — the earth

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