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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. rush — hurry
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. ground — crushed
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. last — finally
  10. row — to paddle
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. last — to go on
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. pop — to visit
  16. row — a line
  17. last — final
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. pop — soda
  20. ground — a position
  21. fine — high quality
  22. fine — all right
  23. pop — music
  24. mine — for digging

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