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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. ball — a dance
  5. race — a contest
  6. fine — high quality
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. bear — the animal
  9. fine — all right
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. tear — from crying
  12. bear — the animal
  13. spring — of water
  14. tear — from crying
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. tear — to rip
  17. ball — a great time
  18. dip — to sink
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. spring — the season
  22. race — humankind
  23. race — the arms race
  24. patient — a sick person

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