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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 people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. chest — of your body
  3. ground — a position
  4. rash — a series
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. spell — letters
  11. season — in sport
  12. bear — the animal
  13. chest — a box
  14. season — of the year
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. chest — of your body
  17. spell — magic
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. ground — crushed
  20. ground — the earth
  21. bear — the animal
  22. spell — a short time
  23. rash — hasty
  24. bear — to put up with

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