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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. ground — crushed
  3. ground — a position
  4. hand — in cards
  5. clip — for paper
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. stem — to come from
  10. clip — a video
  11. mug — a face
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. mine — for digging
  14. clip — to cut
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. mug — to rob
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. ground — the earth
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. mug — a cup
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. calf — a young animal

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