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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 120 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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. last — final
  4. land — ground
  5. last — to go on
  6. pass — a permit
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. wound — an injury
  9. foot — a measure
  10. land — to come down
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. last — finally
  13. ground — a position
  14. swing — music
  15. swing — in golf
  16. land — a country
  17. ground — crushed
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. saw — the tool
  20. ground — the earth
  21. swing — to play on
  22. wound — an injury
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. saw — the tool

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