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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 assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. tear — from crying
  5. cap — a hat
  6. ground — crushed
  7. ground — a position
  8. season — of the year
  9. cap — of ice
  10. hand — in cards
  11. tear — to rip
  12. ground — the earth
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. hand — help
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. fine — high quality
  19. tear — from crying
  20. stock — shares
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. stock — goods
  23. cap — a lid
  24. season — in sport

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