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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. pop — to visit
  3. prune — to trim
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. pop — soda
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. capital — a city
  9. dip — to sink
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. prune — to trim
  16. lean — thin
  17. capital — money
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. ground — crushed
  21. lean — to bend
  22. ground — the earth
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. pop — music

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