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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. tear — to rip
  3. mark — a trace
  4. pit — a hole
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. root — the cause
  8. fine — all right
  9. ground — crushed
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. fine — high quality
  12. ground — the earth
  13. tear — from crying
  14. mark — a grade
  15. scale — size or range
  16. tear — from crying
  17. present — there
  18. root — of a plant
  19. present — the time now
  20. pit — in a race
  21. scale — in music
  22. ground — a position
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. root — of a word

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