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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. field — for sport
  3. bank — for money
  4. cap — a hat
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. mate — a partner
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cap — of ice
  9. field — a subject
  10. rest — a break
  11. object — to protest
  12. object — an aim
  13. row — a line
  14. object — a thing
  15. row — to paddle
  16. bank — of a river
  17. bank — for money
  18. spring — a coil
  19. field — farmland
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rest — what's left
  22. mate — to breed
  23. mate — a friend
  24. spring — the season

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