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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. ground — a position
  3. tube — the underground
  4. spring — a coil
  5. squash — to crush
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. ground — the earth
  8. lie — to recline
  9. scale — size or range
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. squash — the sport
  12. spring — of water
  13. cap — of ice
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. cap — a lid
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. spring — the season
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. cap — a hat
  21. tube — a container
  22. scale — in music
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. ground — crushed

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