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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 120 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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. ground — crushed
  3. field — farmland
  4. rash — hasty
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. rash — a series
  11. field — a subject
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. charge — in control
  14. charge — a price
  15. field — for sport
  16. march — the month
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. march — music
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. march — the month
  21. charge — electricity
  22. ground — a position
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. straw — a straw man

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