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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 had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. cold — not warm
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. mate — to breed
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. kid — to tease
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. ground — a position
  9. mine — for digging
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. ground — the earth
  13. fine — all right
  14. mate — a friend
  15. mate — a partner
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. kid — child
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. stock — goods
  21. ground — crushed
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. stock — shares
  24. fine — high quality

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