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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. foot — a measure
  3. track — to keep track
  4. ground — the earth
  5. ground — a position
  6. chest — of your body
  7. wound — an injury
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. track — a path
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. track — a song
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wax — to grow
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. ball — a great time
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chest — a box
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. ball — a dance

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