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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. lie — to recline
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. ground — a position
  6. face — part of the head
  7. present — a gift
  8. present — the time now
  9. pitch — completely
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. club — for dancing
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. clip — for paper
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. clip — to cut
  16. club — for golf
  17. clip — a video
  18. present — there
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. face — to confront
  22. club — a group
  23. face — to point toward
  24. ground — the earth

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