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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. cold — an illness
  3. lie — to recline
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. board — a committee
  7. board — to get on
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. ground — the earth
  10. degree — temperature
  11. mug — to rob
  12. degree — from a university
  13. ground — crushed
  14. mug — a face
  15. chair — a leader
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. mug — a cup
  20. cold — not warm
  21. dip — to sink
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. degree — an amount
  24. dip — to dunk

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