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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: bay · pop · face · drill · mine · ground · toast · swing

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. toast — a drink to someone
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. pop — to visit
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. toast — bread
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. drill — the tool
  9. face — to point toward
  10. swing — in golf
  11. face — part of the head
  12. drill — a practice
  13. face — to confront
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. ground — crushed
  16. pop — music
  17. ground — a position
  18. swing — to play on
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. mine — for digging
  21. drill — army training
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. swing — music
  24. ground — the earth

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