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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 · game · ground · pound · shower · stand · face · chest

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. ground — the earth
  3. ground — a position
  4. chest — of your body
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. face — part of the head
  8. shower — to wash
  9. chest — a box
  10. bulb — for light
  11. game — wild animals
  12. ground — crushed
  13. shower — rain
  14. face — to point toward
  15. chest — of your body
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. bulb — for light
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. face — to confront
  21. pound — a weight
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. stand — to bear
  24. stand — for spectators

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