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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. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. ground — the earth
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. pound — a weight
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. pop — to visit
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. foot — a measure
  14. pop — music
  15. ground — crushed
  16. game — a match
  17. game — wild animals
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. pop — soda

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