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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. spring — of water
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. cold — an illness
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. spring — a coil
  8. saw — the tool
  9. swing — music
  10. fine — high quality
  11. saw — the tool
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. spring — the season
  14. net — after costs
  15. season — of the year
  16. swing — to play on
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. fine — all right
  19. swing — in golf
  20. net — in sport
  21. net — for catching
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. cold — not warm
  24. season — in sport

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