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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. roll — a cake
  3. shower — rain
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. ground — a position
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. roll — a list
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. pop — music
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. ground — crushed
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. pop — to visit
  17. fork — in a road
  18. shower — to wash
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. rash — hasty
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. rash — a series
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. ground — the earth

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