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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. season — in sport
  3. branch — a division
  4. bulb — for light
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. foot — a measure
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. ground — crushed
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. season — of the year
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. bear — the animal
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. pit — in a race
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bear — the animal
  23. ground — the earth
  24. pit — a hole

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