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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. mate — to breed
  3. ground — a position
  4. spell — magic
  5. ground — the earth
  6. bat — the animal
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. mate — a partner
  9. spell — letters
  10. ground — crushed
  11. land — to come down
  12. land — ground
  13. pitch — completely
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. staff — employees
  16. spell — a short time
  17. land — a country
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. mate — a friend
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. lean — to bend
  23. staff — employees
  24. lean — thin

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