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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. spring — the season
  3. stock — goods
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — of water
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. spell — magic
  8. key — the most important part
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. stock — shares
  12. field — for sport
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. lean — thin
  15. spell — letters
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. field — a subject
  18. spell — a short time
  19. key — in music
  20. field — farmland
  21. mine — for digging
  22. key — for a lock
  23. lean — to bend
  24. mine — an explosive

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