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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. ground — crushed
  3. rock — a stone
  4. net — after costs
  5. file — a tool
  6. file — a line of people
  7. file — a document
  8. cell — in biology
  9. tear — to rip
  10. tear — from crying
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. bear — the animal
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. bear — the animal
  17. tear — from crying
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. net — for catching
  20. ground — the earth
  21. cell — a phone
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. rock — music
  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