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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. squash — the sport
  3. firm — a company
  4. ground — the earth
  5. firm — decided
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. kid — child
  8. squash — to crush
  9. cold — not warm
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. last — finally
  13. shower — to wash
  14. shower — rain
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. ground — crushed
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. last — final
  21. firm — steady
  22. cold — an illness
  23. kid — to tease
  24. last — to go on

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