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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. march — the month
  4. row — to paddle
  5. march — the month
  6. club — a group
  7. ground — the earth
  8. ground — a position
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. chest — of your body
  13. club — for dancing
  14. march — music
  15. club — for golf
  16. row — a line
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. cell — in biology
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. chest — of your body
  21. pass — a permit
  22. cell — a phone
  23. perch — the fish
  24. chest — a box

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