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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. tear — from crying
  4. mug — a face
  5. spell — letters
  6. ground — crushed
  7. tear — to rip
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. net — in sport
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. net — after costs
  14. ground — a position
  15. spell — a short time
  16. mug — to rob
  17. mug — a cup
  18. pass — a permit
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. spell — magic
  21. tear — from crying
  22. pass — to succeed
  23. wax — to grow
  24. net — for catching

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