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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. row — a line
  3. capital — money
  4. foot — a measure
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. ground — a position
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. shower — to wash
  10. ground — the earth
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. row — to paddle
  13. wound — an injury
  14. ground — crushed
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. capital — a city
  18. shower — rain
  19. wound — an injury
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. chair — a leader

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