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

Word bank: rock · ground · tear · wake · chair · date · mug · pound

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. ground — a position
  3. ground — the earth
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. tear — from crying
  6. date — the fruit
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. mug — to rob
  10. ground — crushed
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. wake — a trail
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. chair — a leader
  18. rock — a stone
  19. pound — a weight
  20. rock — music
  21. tear — from crying
  22. tear — to rip
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. mug — a cup

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