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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: bulb · ground · pit · face · game · chair · toast · hide

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. chair — a leader
  3. face — part of the head
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. game — wild animals
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. face — to confront
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. toast — bread
  12. game — a match
  13. ground — a position
  14. pit — in a race
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. bulb — for light
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. ground — crushed
  19. face — to point toward
  20. bulb — for light
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. ground — the earth
  24. toast — the most admired

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