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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. spring — of water
  3. ground — crushed
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. game — wild animals
  8. pound — a weight
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. spring — a coil
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. ground — the earth
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. shower — rain
  19. bulb — for light
  20. perch — the fish
  21. bulb — for light
  22. shower — to wash
  23. game — a match
  24. spring — the season

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