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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. game — a match
  4. ground — a position
  5. ground — crushed
  6. ground — the earth
  7. sharp — clever
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. spell — letters
  12. root — of a plant
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. game — wild animals
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. root — the cause
  19. root — of a word
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. wake — a trail
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. spell — magic

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