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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 116 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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. cold — an illness
  4. wake — a trail
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. ground — a position
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. lie — to recline
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. pass — a permit
  19. rock — a stone
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. cold — not warm
  22. rock — music
  23. ground — the earth
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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