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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. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. toast — bread
  6. pop — to visit
  7. ground — the earth
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. file — a document
  11. ground — crushed
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. pop — soda
  16. deal — to handle
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. vault — a safe
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. file — a tool
  22. pop — music
  23. file — a line of people
  24. bowl — to roll

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