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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: scale · bear · hand · dip · land · cabinet · ground · cold

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. scale — size or range
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. ground — the earth
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. hand — help
  8. dip — to sink
  9. scale — in music
  10. bear — the animal
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. hand — in cards
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. land — ground
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. ground — a position
  18. land — a country
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. cold — an illness
  21. bear — the animal
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. ground — crushed
  24. land — to come down

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