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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 116 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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. clip — a video
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. can — a tin
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. bear — the animal
  8. spring — the season
  9. degree — from a university
  10. clip — to cut
  11. mark — a grade
  12. spring — a coil
  13. branch — a division
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. can — a tin
  16. can — to be able to
  17. degree — temperature
  18. face — to confront
  19. mark — a trace
  20. clip — for paper
  21. bear — the animal
  22. face — to point toward
  23. degree — an amount
  24. face — part of the head

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