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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.

Make a worksheet

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 works in a ________________ mill.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. saw — the tool
  3. spring — of water
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. row — a line
  8. wax — to grow
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. row — to paddle
  13. spring — a coil
  14. saw — the tool
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. mine — for digging
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — a jug

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