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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. season — in sport
  3. net — after costs
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. tear — to rip
  6. net — for catching
  7. pop — music
  8. ground — the earth
  9. spell — a short time
  10. pop — soda
  11. ground — a position
  12. spell — magic
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. season — of the year
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. spell — letters
  18. net — in sport
  19. sharp — clever
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — from crying
  22. ground — crushed
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. calf — a young animal

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