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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. march — the month
  3. fall — to drop
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. march — the month
  6. wind — moving air
  7. ground — the earth
  8. ground — crushed
  9. ground — a position
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. fall — the season
  12. cap — a hat
  13. foot — a measure
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. wind — moving air
  16. fall — to drop
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. cap — of ice
  20. stand — to bear
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. cap — a lid
  23. march — music
  24. foot — the bottom

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