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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. rash — hasty
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. mine — for digging
  8. rash — a series
  9. chip — for betting
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. chip — to eat
  12. bark — to shout
  13. ground — crushed
  14. ground — the earth
  15. capital — a city
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. capital — money
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. foot — a measure

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