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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. pit — a hole
  3. firm — a company
  4. file — a line of people
  5. ground — a position
  6. firm — decided
  7. ground — crushed
  8. key — for a lock
  9. firm — steady
  10. file — a tool
  11. ground — the earth
  12. ball — a dance
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. sharp — clever
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. ball — a great time
  19. key — in music
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. key — the most important part
  22. file — a document
  23. pit — in a race
  24. shower — rain

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