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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. ground — the earth
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. date — the fruit
  5. game — a match
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. ground — crushed
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. game — wild animals
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. pit — in a race
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. shower — to wash
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. ground — a position
  17. shower — rain
  18. land — a country
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. land — to come down
  21. land — ground
  22. face — part of the head
  23. face — to confront
  24. face — to point toward

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