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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. land — to come down
  3. rush — hurry
  4. land — a country
  5. ground — crushed
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. face — to point toward
  8. race — a contest
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. land — ground
  12. face — part of the head
  13. race — humankind
  14. roll — a list
  15. bulb — for light
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. race — the arms race
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. ground — a position
  20. face — to confront
  21. bulb — for light
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. ground — the earth

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