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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. ground — a position
  4. track — a path
  5. track — to keep track
  6. chest — a box
  7. spring — a coil
  8. ground — the earth
  9. bound — obliged
  10. spring — the season
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bound — tied together
  14. saw — the tool
  15. chest — of your body
  16. bound — certain
  17. rash — hasty
  18. spring — of water
  19. saw — the tool
  20. track — a song
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. stand — to bear
  24. rash — a series

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