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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. present — the time now
  3. ground — a position
  4. cold — an illness
  5. cold — not warm
  6. chest — a box
  7. chest — of your body
  8. rule — government
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. rule — a law
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. present — there
  17. pound — a weight
  18. ground — crushed
  19. present — a gift
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. chest — of your body
  23. ground — the earth
  24. rule — to rule out

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