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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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. hand — help
  3. pitch — completely
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. ground — the earth
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. tear — from crying
  8. press — a publisher
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. fine — all right
  11. tear — from crying
  12. press — newspapers
  13. prune — to trim
  14. fine — high quality
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. wound — an injury
  17. ground — crushed
  18. tear — to rip
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. prune — to trim
  21. wound — an injury
  22. ground — a position
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. press — to push

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