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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. ground — crushed
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. board — to get on
  5. spring — the season
  6. ground — a position
  7. board — a committee
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. cap — a lid
  13. spring — a coil
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. spring — of water
  17. stock — shares
  18. stock — goods
  19. ground — the earth
  20. cap — of ice
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. cap — a hat
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. lie — to recline

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