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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. bat — the animal
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. ground — a position
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. ground — the earth
  11. craft — a skill
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. wake — a trail
  15. cap — a hat
  16. cap — a lid
  17. craft — boats
  18. rush — hurry
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. cap — of ice
  24. bark — to shout

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