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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. wind — moving air
  4. mine — for digging
  5. staff — employees
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. current — of water
  9. staff — employees
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. ground — a position
  13. current — happening now
  14. cell — a phone
  15. ground — the earth
  16. wind — moving air
  17. current — electric
  18. dip — to sink
  19. staff — a stick
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. ground — crushed
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. mine — an explosive

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