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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. net — in sport
  3. drill — army training
  4. wound — an injury
  5. ground — a position
  6. drill — a practice
  7. fall — to drop
  8. wound — an injury
  9. ground — crushed
  10. scale — size or range
  11. rash — a series
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. land — ground
  14. land — a country
  15. net — for catching
  16. rash — hasty
  17. net — after costs
  18. scale — in music
  19. fall — the season
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. fall — to drop
  22. drill — the tool
  23. land — to come down
  24. rash — on the skin

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