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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. net — in sport
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. spring — of water
  5. field — a subject
  6. object — a thing
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. object — an aim
  9. field — for sport
  10. net — after costs
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. rock — a stone
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. net — for catching
  15. field — farmland
  16. spring — the season
  17. object — to protest
  18. rock — music

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