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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. net — in sport
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. ground — the earth
  5. net — for catching
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. board — to get on
  8. branch — a division
  9. last — final
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. last — to go on
  12. net — after costs
  13. season — in sport
  14. season — of the year
  15. pound — a weight
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. board — a committee
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. last — finally
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. ground — a position
  23. scale — in music
  24. scale — size or range

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