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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 124 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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. season — in sport
  3. face — to confront
  4. ground — the earth
  5. wax — to grow
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. face — to point toward
  10. face — part of the head
  11. scale — size or range
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. season — of the year
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. ground — a position
  16. scale — in music
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. pitch — completely
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. shower — to wash
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. shower — rain
  24. scale — for weighing

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