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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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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: fall · pop · season · face · shower · pit · ground · object

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. ground — a position
  3. object — a thing
  4. pop — to visit
  5. pit — in a race
  6. ground — the earth
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. pit — a hole
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fall — the season
  13. season — in sport
  14. shower — rain
  15. face — to confront
  16. pop — soda
  17. shower — to wash
  18. fall — to drop
  19. object — an aim
  20. face — to point toward
  21. pop — music
  22. season — of the year
  23. face — part of the head
  24. ground — crushed

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