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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 116 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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. lie — to recline
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. ground — crushed
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. drill — a practice
  8. drill — the tool
  9. squash — to crush
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. pop — to visit
  12. drill — army training
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. pop — soda
  15. squash — the sport
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. pop — music
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. ground — a position
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. file — a line of people
  23. file — a document
  24. file — a tool

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