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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  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. game — a match
  2. ground — crushed
  3. staff — a stick
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. ground — the earth
  6. rule — government
  7. face — part of the head
  8. rule — a law
  9. content — the amount
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. face — to confront
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. staff — employees
  14. prune — to trim
  15. game — wild animals
  16. ground — a position
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. content — happy
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. face — to point toward
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. prune — to trim
  23. staff — employees
  24. prune — the fruit

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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