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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 120 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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. shower — to wash
  3. ground — crushed
  4. spring — of water
  5. tear — to rip
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. suit — to fit
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. spring — a coil
  12. ground — a position
  13. ground — the earth
  14. tear — from crying
  15. suit — clothes
  16. tear — from crying
  17. suit — in cards
  18. shower — rain

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