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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 120 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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. sharp — clever
  4. spell — magic
  5. ground — crushed
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. spell — letters
  12. drill — the tool
  13. drill — army training
  14. spell — a short time
  15. ground — the earth
  16. lean — thin
  17. net — for catching
  18. drill — a practice
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. net — in sport
  22. net — after costs
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. ground — a position

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