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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 116 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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. ground — a position
  4. face — to confront
  5. last — finally
  6. ground — crushed
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. bear — the animal
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. bear — the animal
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. land — ground
  16. last — to go on
  17. ground — the earth
  18. face — part of the head
  19. face — to point toward
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. land — a country
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. land — to come down
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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