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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. spring — of water
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. root — of a plant
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. spring — a coil
  8. wound — an injury
  9. ground — crushed
  10. dip — to sink
  11. root — of a word
  12. ground — the earth
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. spring — the season
  16. pound — a weight
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. wound — an injury
  22. pitch — completely
  23. vault — a safe
  24. root — the cause

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