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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. spring — of water
  3. can — to be able to
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. can — a tin
  7. can — a tin
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. spring — the season
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. firm — steady
  14. cell — in biology
  15. firm — a company
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. cell — a phone
  18. pound — a weight
  19. chair — a leader
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. cold — not warm
  22. spring — a coil
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. firm — decided

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