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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. present — a gift
  4. scale — in music
  5. prune — to trim
  6. present — the time now
  7. present — there
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. ground — the earth
  10. rock — music
  11. kid — child
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. bear — the animal
  14. ground — a position
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. prune — to trim
  18. bear — the animal
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. scale — size or range
  21. rock — a stone
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. ground — crushed
  24. bowl — a dish

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