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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. mug — a face
  3. hand — help
  4. field — farmland
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. mark — a grade
  7. hand — in cards
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. field — a subject
  14. mark — a trace
  15. spring — the season
  16. bore — to drill
  17. field — for sport
  18. spring — of water
  19. mug — a cup
  20. jam — a tight spot
  21. date — the fruit
  22. bore — to tire
  23. mug — to rob
  24. date — on the calendar

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