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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 116 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 King held a masked ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. ball — a dance
  3. season — in sport
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. face — part of the head
  6. row — to paddle
  7. season — of the year
  8. face — to confront
  9. net — for catching
  10. row — a line
  11. scale — in music
  12. scale — size or range
  13. face — to point toward
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. net — after costs
  16. ground — the earth
  17. hand — help
  18. ground — a position
  19. hand — in cards
  20. net — in sport
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. ball — a great time
  24. season — to add flavour

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