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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 116 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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. season — of the year
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. hand — in cards
  5. board — to get on
  6. ground — crushed
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. shower — to wash
  11. land — a country
  12. ground — the earth
  13. shower — rain
  14. season — in sport
  15. pass — a permit
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. land — to come down
  19. hand — help
  20. board — a committee
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. ground — a position
  23. pitch — completely
  24. pass — to succeed

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