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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. pit — in a race
  4. pit — a hole
  5. ground — the earth
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — to trim
  8. wound — an injury
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. net — for catching
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. net — after costs
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. ground — crushed
  16. cold — not warm
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. net — in sport
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. cold — an illness
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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