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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. cap — of ice
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. cap — a lid
  5. stock — goods
  6. bear — the animal
  7. content — happy
  8. ground — the earth
  9. bat — the animal
  10. cap — a hat
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. content — the amount
  14. ground — a position
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bear — the animal
  17. stock — shares
  18. bat — in an idiom

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