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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 newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. snap — to click
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. ground — crushed
  5. current — happening now
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. foot — a measure
  9. game — a match
  10. prune — to trim
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. current — of water
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. prune — to trim
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. game — wild animals
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. ground — the earth
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. ground — a position
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. current — electric
  24. branch — a division

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