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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. ground — the earth
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. land — to come down
  5. land — ground
  6. fall — the season
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. fork — in a road
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. rock — music
  13. ground — crushed
  14. bear — the animal
  15. ground — a position
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. land — a country
  19. bear — the animal
  20. ball — a great time
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. rock — a stone
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fall — to drop

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