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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. firm — a company
  3. ground — crushed
  4. ground — a position
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. ground — the earth
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. firm — steady
  10. degree — from a university
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. cold — an illness
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. degree — an amount
  16. firm — decided
  17. cold — not warm
  18. scale — size or range
  19. bound — certain
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. degree — temperature
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. bound — obliged
  24. scale — in music

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