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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 124 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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. ground — crushed
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. ground — a position
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. roll — a cake
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. prune — to trim
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. ground — the earth
  19. roll — a list
  20. prune — to trim
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. sharp — clever
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. sharp — with an edge

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