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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. chest — a box
  3. rule — government
  4. fall — to drop
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. prune — to trim
  7. cap — a lid
  8. rule — a law
  9. cap — of ice
  10. fall — the season
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. chest — of your body
  14. bear — the animal
  15. prune — to trim
  16. pound — a weight
  17. ground — the earth
  18. ground — crushed
  19. fall — to drop
  20. bear — the animal
  21. cap — a hat
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. chest — of your body
  24. prune — the fruit

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