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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. ground — crushed
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. wound — an injury
  7. rash — a series
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. wound — an injury
  12. kick — in football
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. rash — hasty
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. file — a line of people
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. file — a document
  21. ground — the earth
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. file — a tool
  24. rash — on the skin

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