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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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. firm — steady
  3. mine — for digging
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. dip — to sink
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. mug — to rob
  12. ball — a dance
  13. mug — a cup
  14. cold — not warm
  15. firm — decided
  16. ground — crushed
  17. ball — a great time
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. ground — the earth
  21. ground — a position
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. mug — a face
  24. firm — a company

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