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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. rest — a break
  3. spring — the season
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. mate — a friend
  8. mate — a partner
  9. lie — to recline
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. cell — a phone
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. mate — to breed
  18. spring — a coil
  19. rest — what's left
  20. rest — what's left
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. cell — in biology

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