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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. content — the amount
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. content — happy
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cap — a hat
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cold — an illness
  12. ground — the earth
  13. cold — not warm
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. drill — army training
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. fork — in a road
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. cap — of ice
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. drill — a practice
  23. drill — the tool
  24. ground — a position

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