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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 120 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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. bank — for money
  3. spring — the season
  4. object — an aim
  5. stock — shares
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. bank — for money
  8. bank — of a river
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cold — an illness
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. can — a tin
  13. object — a thing
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. object — to protest
  16. stock — goods
  17. spring — of water
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. can — to be able to
  20. can — a tin
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. spring — a coil
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. mine — for digging

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