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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 116 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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. rest — what's left
  3. ground — the earth
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. bound — certain
  6. bound — obliged
  7. current — happening now
  8. current — of water
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. stock — goods
  11. degree — an amount
  12. ground — a position
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cold — not warm
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. stock — shares
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bound — tied together
  20. current — electric
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. degree — temperature
  23. degree — from a university
  24. rest — a break

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