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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. present — there
  3. cap — a hat
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. mine — for digging
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. cap — a lid
  13. cap — of ice
  14. present — a gift
  15. ground — crushed
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. cell — a phone
  18. cell — in biology
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. ground — a position
  21. present — the time now
  22. lie — to recline
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. ground — the earth

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