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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 120 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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. ground — a position
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. rock — a stone
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. spell — letters
  12. cold — not warm
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. spell — magic
  16. wax — to grow
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. cold — an illness
  21. spell — a short time
  22. ground — the earth
  23. ground — crushed
  24. rock — music

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