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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. season — of the year
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cue — a signal
  11. cue — for pool
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. lie — to recline
  14. cue — a hint
  15. season — in sport
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. land — to come down
  18. stand — to bear
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. spring — the season
  21. cold — an illness
  22. land — ground
  23. spring — a coil
  24. land — a country

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