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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. swing — in golf
  3. ground — the earth
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. file — a tool
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. swing — music
  9. swing — to play on
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. file — a line of people
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. degree — from a university
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. season — of the year
  18. degree — temperature
  19. season — in sport
  20. file — a document
  21. degree — an amount
  22. kick — in football
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. ground — a position

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