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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. ground — a position
  3. face — to point toward
  4. land — a country
  5. chip — to eat
  6. club — a group
  7. ground — crushed
  8. swing — music
  9. land — to come down
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. club — for golf
  12. swing — to play on
  13. club — for dancing
  14. wax — to grow
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. chip — for betting
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. face — to confront
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. swing — in golf
  21. face — part of the head
  22. land — ground
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. branch — a division

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