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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 116 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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. pit — a hole
  3. ground — the earth
  4. ground — a position
  5. mate — to breed
  6. squash — to crush
  7. board — to get on
  8. ground — crushed
  9. squash — the sport
  10. file — a document
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. field — a subject
  13. field — for sport
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. pit — in a race
  16. degree — from a university
  17. degree — temperature
  18. field — farmland
  19. file — a tool
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. mate — a partner
  22. mate — a friend
  23. degree — an amount
  24. board — a committee

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