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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. fine — high quality
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. branch — a division
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. last — final
  8. ground — a position
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. ground — the earth
  11. pit — a hole
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. scale — size or range
  14. cell — in biology
  15. scale — in music
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. last — to go on
  18. pit — in a race
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. cell — a phone
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. last — finally
  23. snap — to click
  24. fine — all right

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