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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. When was this ________________ built?
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. net — after costs
  4. pit — a hole
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. chest — of your body
  7. lie — to recline
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. ground — the earth
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. chest — of your body
  13. pit — in a race
  14. present — a gift
  15. present — the time now
  16. chest — a box
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. net — in sport
  22. present — there
  23. ground — a position
  24. net — for catching

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