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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 124 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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. can — a tin
  3. mug — a cup
  4. can — a tin
  5. foot — a measure
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cold — an illness
  9. can — to be able to
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. clip — to cut
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. clip — a video
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. kick — in football
  17. ground — the earth
  18. mug — to rob
  19. mug — a face
  20. lie — to recline
  21. clip — for paper
  22. ground — a position
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. ground — crushed

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