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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. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. spring — a coil
  3. mine — for digging
  4. can — a tin
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. can — a tin
  7. file — a line of people
  8. ground — crushed
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. file — a tool
  11. spring — of water
  12. spring — the season
  13. ground — a position
  14. chest — of your body
  15. file — a document
  16. chest — a box
  17. chest — of your body
  18. can — to be able to

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