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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. spring — a coil
  3. last — final
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. last — finally
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. saw — the tool
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. ground — a position
  13. spring — the season
  14. rush — hurry
  15. spring — of water
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. ground — the earth
  18. saw — the tool
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. last — to go on
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. rush — a thrill

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