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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. bulb — for light
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. cell — in biology
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. face — to point toward
  8. ground — a position
  9. spring — of water
  10. ground — the earth
  11. face — to confront
  12. spring — the season
  13. cell — a phone
  14. pass — to spend time
  15. bulb — for light
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. pass — a permit
  21. face — part of the head
  22. shower — rain
  23. spring — a coil
  24. shower — to wash

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