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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. roll — a list
  3. ground — a position
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. mug — a cup
  6. foot — a measure
  7. mug — a face
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. last — to go on
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. mug — to rob
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. last — finally
  16. content — happy
  17. content — the amount
  18. roll — a cake
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. ground — the earth
  21. last — final
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. content — videos and posts

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