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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. shower — rain
  7. ground — crushed
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. snap — to click
  10. pound — a weight
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. pass — a permit
  14. cell — a phone
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. ground — the earth
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. ground — a position
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. cell — in biology
  22. shower — to wash
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. cabinet — ministers

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