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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. tear — to rip
  3. rest — a break
  4. content — happy
  5. rest — what's left
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. mark — a grade
  8. ground — the earth
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. tear — from crying
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. ground — a position
  13. spring — the season
  14. season — of the year
  15. season — in sport
  16. spring — of water
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. spring — a coil
  21. content — the amount
  22. tear — from crying
  23. mark — a trace
  24. rest — what's left

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