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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. last — to go on
  3. ground — the earth
  4. last — finally
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. cold — an illness
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. kid — to tease
  9. pound — a weight
  10. bear — the animal
  11. cap — a lid
  12. ground — crushed
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. kid — child
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. ball — a dance
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. ball — a great time
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. bear — the animal
  21. ground — a position
  22. last — final
  23. cold — not warm
  24. cap — a hat

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