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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. present — a gift
  3. ground — a position
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. ground — crushed
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — an illness
  9. cold — not warm
  10. present — the time now
  11. rush — hurry
  12. ground — the earth
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. present — there
  15. season — of the year
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. season — in sport
  18. mouse — the animal

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