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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. bat — the animal
  4. face — part of the head
  5. net — in sport
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. mine — for digging
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. squash — the sport
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. face — to confront
  13. net — for catching
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. face — to point toward
  17. squash — to crush
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. net — after costs
  20. ground — crushed
  21. ground — the earth
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. mouse — for a computer

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