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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 116 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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. dip — to sink
  4. cold — an illness
  5. ground — crushed
  6. degree — temperature
  7. ground — a position
  8. lie — to recline
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. degree — an amount
  11. wake — a trail
  12. cold — not warm
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. degree — from a university
  16. ground — the earth
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. dip — to dunk

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