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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. sharp — clever
  3. spring — a coil
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. spring — of water
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. scale — size or range
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. wake — a trail
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. mine — for digging
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. scale — in music
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. plane — a tool
  24. sharp — exactly

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