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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. ground — the earth
  3. tear — from crying
  4. ground — a position
  5. track — a song
  6. ground — crushed
  7. capital — a city
  8. mate — a partner
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. spell — letters
  11. track — to keep track
  12. spell — magic
  13. mate — to breed
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. spell — a short time
  16. dip — to sink
  17. capital — money
  18. track — a path
  19. mate — a friend
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. tear — to rip
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. tear — from crying
  24. capital — a big letter

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