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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. season — of the year
  6. ground — a position
  7. last — final
  8. bear — the animal
  9. last — to go on
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. bear — the animal
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ground — crushed
  14. rest — what's left
  15. deal — to handle
  16. rest — a break
  17. last — finally
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. bore — to drill
  20. bore — to tire
  21. lean — thin
  22. lean — to bend
  23. season — in sport
  24. rest — what's left

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