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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. snap — to click
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. ground — a position
  5. root — the cause
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. file — a line of people
  9. race — the arms race
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. file — a tool
  14. root — of a word
  15. root — of a plant
  16. race — humankind
  17. file — a document
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. ground — crushed
  20. race — a contest
  21. season — of the year
  22. season — in sport
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. hide — to keep secret

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