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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. ground — crushed
  4. face — to point toward
  5. face — to confront
  6. bat — the animal
  7. wound — an injury
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. ground — a position
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. wound — an injury
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. cap — of ice
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. cap — a lid
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. degree — from a university
  19. cap — a hat
  20. degree — an amount
  21. face — part of the head
  22. bear — the animal
  23. degree — temperature
  24. bear — the animal

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