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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 120 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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. game — a match
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. squash — the sport
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. ground — crushed
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. lie — to recline
  12. race — humankind
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. squash — to crush
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. race — the arms race
  17. ground — the earth
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. race — a contest
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. mine — for digging
  24. game — wild animals

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