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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. net — after costs
  3. ball — a great time
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. pit — in a race
  7. present — the time now
  8. field — farmland
  9. ground — the earth
  10. ball — a dance
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. field — for sport
  13. net — for catching
  14. field — a subject
  15. spell — letters
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. spell — a short time
  18. spell — magic
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. present — there
  21. ground — a position
  22. net — in sport
  23. pit — a hole
  24. present — a gift

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