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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. ground — crushed
  3. ball — a dance
  4. land — ground
  5. net — after costs
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. mark — a trace
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. saw — the tool
  12. mark — a grade
  13. net — in sport
  14. ground — the earth
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. ball — a great time
  17. ground — a position
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. pass — a permit
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. net — for catching
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. land — a country
  24. land — to come down

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