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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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. game — a match
  3. ground — a position
  4. tear — from crying
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. tear — from crying
  8. net — after costs
  9. tear — to rip
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. saw — the tool
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. game — wild animals
  15. net — for catching
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. net — in sport
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. saw — the tool
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. deal — to handle
  23. pitch — completely
  24. ground — crushed

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