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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 124 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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mug · ball · deal · pound · cold · ground

  1. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. ball — a great time
  4. mug — a cup
  5. deal — to handle
  6. mug — a face
  7. ground — the earth
  8. cold — not warm
  9. ground — a position
  10. pound — a weight
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. cold — an illness
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. ball — a dance
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. ground — crushed
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. deal — a big deal

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