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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. drill — army training
  3. ground — the earth
  4. ground — crushed
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. ground — a position
  7. chest — of your body
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. pit — a hole
  10. pit — in a race
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. track — to keep track
  13. net — for catching
  14. track — a song
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. drill — a practice
  17. chest — a box
  18. chest — of your body
  19. net — after costs
  20. net — in sport
  21. drill — the tool
  22. stand — to bear
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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