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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 116 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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. mate — to breed
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. shower — to wash
  5. can — a tin
  6. mate — a friend
  7. wound — an injury
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. court — of a king
  10. court — of law
  11. spring — of water
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. spring — the season
  14. wake — a trail
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. can — to be able to
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. wound — an injury
  19. court — for sport
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. mate — a partner
  23. shower — rain
  24. spring — a coil

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