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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. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. game — wild animals
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. field — farmland
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. wake — a trail
  8. ground — the earth
  9. shower — to wash
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. field — a subject
  14. field — for sport
  15. ground — a position
  16. roll — a list
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. game — a match
  19. roll — a cake
  20. craft — a skill
  21. ground — crushed
  22. craft — boats
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. craft — a handicraft

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