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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: ground · pitcher · pop · snap · chair · cap · temple · file

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. pop — music
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. chair — a leader
  8. ground — a position
  9. cap — of ice
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. cap — a lid
  12. ground — the earth
  13. file — a tool
  14. snap — to click
  15. pop — to visit
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. pop — soda
  21. cap — a hat
  22. file — a document
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. file — a line of people

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