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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. cell — in biology
  3. spring — a coil
  4. drill — a practice
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. drill — the tool
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. ground — crushed
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. sharp — clever
  15. drill — army training
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. spring — of water
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. spring — the season
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. cell — a phone
  23. ground — the earth
  24. bowl — a football final

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