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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. cold — not warm
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. rest — what's left
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. rash — hasty
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. ground — a position
  11. plane — a tool
  12. rest — a break
  13. ground — the earth
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. perch — the fish
  17. ground — crushed
  18. rest — what's left
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. rash — a series
  22. cold — an illness
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. plane — in geometry

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