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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. mate — a partner
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. bat — the animal
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. foot — a measure
  8. mate — a friend
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. cap — a hat
  12. mate — to breed
  13. ground — the earth
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. ground — a position
  17. lean — thin
  18. cap — a lid
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. cap — of ice
  23. lean — to bend
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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