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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 120 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: foot · row · can · plane · mug · stick · cold · ground

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. row — a line
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. mug — a face
  6. ground — crushed
  7. plane — a tool
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. cold — an illness
  10. ground — a position
  11. cold — not warm
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. can — to be able to
  14. mug — a cup
  15. foot — a measure
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. can — a tin
  18. can — a tin
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. mug — to rob
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. row — to paddle
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. foot — part of the body

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