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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. field — farmland
  6. mug — a face
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. can — a tin
  9. mine — for digging
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. mug — to rob
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. can — a tin
  17. can — to be able to
  18. fork — in a road
  19. spring — a coil
  20. field — for sport
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. mug — a cup
  23. field — a subject
  24. spring — the season

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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