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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. cue — a hint
  3. cue — for pool
  4. spring — of water
  5. tear — from crying
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. season — in sport
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. can — a tin
  11. can — to be able to
  12. cue — a signal
  13. can — a tin
  14. tear — to rip
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. content — the amount
  17. spring — a coil
  18. spring — the season
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bat — the animal
  21. tear — from crying
  22. season — of the year
  23. mine — for digging
  24. content — happy

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