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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 ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. chest — a box
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. ground — crushed
  7. row — a line
  8. wind — moving air
  9. chest — of your body
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. chest — of your body
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. wind — moving air
  14. staff — employees
  15. row — to paddle
  16. staff — employees
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. ground — a position
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. pitch — completely
  22. staff — a stick
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. row — a quarrel

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