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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. kid — child
  3. season — in sport
  4. season — of the year
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. ground — crushed
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. firm — steady
  9. root — of a plant
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. stand — to bear
  15. root — of a word
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. ground — a position
  18. firm — a company
  19. ground — the earth
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. root — the cause
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. kid — to tease
  24. leaves — of a tree

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