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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: ground · fine · present · face · pound · file · arm · squash

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. ground — a position
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. ground — the earth
  5. fine — high quality
  6. ground — crushed
  7. fine — all right
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. face — to confront
  11. file — a line of people
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. present — the time now
  14. file — a document
  15. present — there
  16. face — part of the head
  17. file — a tool
  18. pound — a weight
  19. present — a gift
  20. squash — to crush
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. squash — the sport

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