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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pop — to visit
  4. ground — a position
  5. ball — a dance
  6. current — of water
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. ball — a great time
  9. last — final
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. current — happening now
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. cell — in biology
  15. last — finally
  16. firm — decided
  17. ground — the earth
  18. pop — music
  19. firm — steady
  20. last — to go on
  21. cell — a phone
  22. pop — soda
  23. current — electric
  24. firm — a company

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