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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 120 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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. content — the amount
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. season — of the year
  5. mug — a cup
  6. hand — help
  7. tear — from crying
  8. tear — to rip
  9. track — a path
  10. track — a song
  11. ground — crushed
  12. tear — from crying
  13. content — happy
  14. mug — to rob
  15. race — a contest
  16. race — the arms race
  17. mug — a face
  18. track — to keep track
  19. hand — in cards
  20. season — in sport
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. ground — a position
  23. race — humankind
  24. season — to add flavour

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