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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. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. chair — a leader
  3. ground — crushed
  4. cap — a hat
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. cap — of ice
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. spell — a short time
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. hand — in cards
  16. tube — the underground
  17. spell — letters
  18. hand — help
  19. ground — a position
  20. ground — the earth
  21. tube — a container
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. spell — magic
  24. mine — for digging

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