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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. spring — a coil
  3. ground — crushed
  4. spring — the season
  5. cap — of ice
  6. bat — the animal
  7. craft — boats
  8. hand — help
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. hand — in cards
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. cap — a hat
  13. saw — the tool
  14. cap — a lid
  15. firm — steady
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. saw — the tool
  18. ground — a position
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. firm — decided
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. craft — a skill
  23. spring — of water
  24. firm — a company

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