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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 like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. tear — from crying
  4. ground — a position
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. scale — size or range
  9. pitch — completely
  10. tear — from crying
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. tear — to rip
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. craft — boats
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. craft — a skill
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. ground — the earth
  20. dip — to sink
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. ground — crushed
  23. sharp — clever
  24. scale — in 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