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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. rash — hasty
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. field — a subject
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. field — farmland
  8. land — ground
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. spring — of water
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. kick — in football
  14. field — for sport
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. rash — a series
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. land — a country
  19. wound — an injury
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. spring — a coil
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. wound — an injury
  24. land — to come down

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