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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. march — music
  4. ground — a position
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. march — the month
  9. season — in sport
  10. mine — for digging
  11. cell — a phone
  12. face — to confront
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. march — the month
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. ground — the earth
  18. ground — crushed
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. face — to point toward
  21. cell — in biology
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. face — part of the head

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