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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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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: row · firm · ground · bear · cold · bound · wave · pit

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. bear — the animal
  3. ground — the earth
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. bear — the animal
  6. pit — a hole
  7. firm — a company
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. bound — tied together
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. row — to paddle
  14. ground — a position
  15. cold — an illness
  16. bound — certain
  17. pit — in a race
  18. cold — not warm
  19. firm — steady
  20. row — a line
  21. bound — obliged
  22. firm — decided
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. cold — the Cold War

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