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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. toast — bread
  4. wind — moving air
  5. spring — a coil
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. fall — the season
  9. stem — to come from
  10. toast — a drink to someone
  11. fall — to drop
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. spring — the season
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. fall — to drop
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. wind — moving air
  24. jam — a tight spot

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