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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. row — to paddle
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. snap — to click
  5. spell — a short time
  6. spring — a coil
  7. vault — a safe
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. row — a line
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. spring — the season
  12. spell — magic
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. chair — a leader
  15. shower — rain
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. foot — a measure
  20. shower — to wash
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. spell — letters

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