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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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. spell — letters
  3. ground — crushed
  4. fall — to drop
  5. spell — magic
  6. fall — the season
  7. row — a line
  8. degree — an amount
  9. ground — a position
  10. spell — a short time
  11. degree — temperature
  12. chip — to eat
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. chip — for betting
  17. degree — from a university
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. fall — to drop
  22. ground — the earth
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. leaves — lets stay

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