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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  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. hide — animal skin
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. net — after costs
  4. cold — an illness
  5. net — for catching
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. ball — a great time
  9. cold — not warm
  10. dip — to sink
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. firm — steady
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. firm — a company
  18. mine — for digging
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. game — wild animals
  21. game — a match
  22. ball — a dance
  23. net — in sport
  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