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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. capital — money
  3. lean — thin
  4. stick — to attach or keep to
  5. spring — the season
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. spring — a coil
  9. hand — help
  10. capital — a city
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. hand — in cards
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. lie — to recline
  19. lean — to bend
  20. spring — of water
  21. mine — for digging
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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