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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  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. coach — a trainer
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. ground — crushed
  5. tear — to rip
  6. tear — from crying
  7. sharp — clever
  8. key — the most important part
  9. key — in music
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. fall — to drop
  12. chip — to eat
  13. fall — to drop
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. key — for a lock
  17. ground — a position
  18. chip — for betting
  19. ground — the earth
  20. fall — the season
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. tear — from crying
  23. chip — in a computer
  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