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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. My mare is ________________ in color.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. content — the amount
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. mine — for digging
  9. clip — a video
  10. cap — a lid
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. clip — for paper
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bay — a horse colour
  16. firm — a company
  17. clip — to cut
  18. content — happy
  19. deal — to handle
  20. cap — of ice
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. firm — decided
  23. cold — an illness
  24. cap — a hat

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