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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. fall — to drop
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. root — of a plant
  5. root — the cause
  6. file — a tool
  7. suit — to fit
  8. root — of a word
  9. suit — clothes
  10. pitch — completely
  11. ground — crushed
  12. suit — in cards
  13. ground — a position
  14. file — a line of people
  15. tear — from crying
  16. net — for catching
  17. file — a document
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. net — after costs
  20. tear — to rip
  21. fall — the season
  22. ground — the earth
  23. tear — from crying
  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