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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. pound — a weight
  3. spell — letters
  4. cap — of ice
  5. file — a document
  6. shower — to wash
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. board — to get on
  9. file — a line of people
  10. board — a committee
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. cap — a hat
  13. ground — the earth
  14. spell — a short time
  15. shower — rain
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. spell — magic
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. cap — a lid
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. ground — crushed
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. file — a tool

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