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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. ground — the earth
  3. bear — the animal
  4. drill — a practice
  5. date — the fruit
  6. ground — crushed
  7. drill — the tool
  8. drill — army training
  9. bear — the animal
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. ground — a position
  15. game — a match
  16. pound — a weight
  17. toast — bread
  18. game — wild animals
  19. face — to point toward
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. face — to confront
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. face — part of the head

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