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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. squash — to crush
  3. row — a line
  4. spring — a coil
  5. staff — employees
  6. wind — moving air
  7. court — of a king
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. last — final
  13. staff — employees
  14. staff — a stick
  15. court — of law
  16. wind — moving air
  17. last — finally
  18. last — to go on
  19. court — for sport
  20. row — to paddle
  21. squash — the sport
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. spring — the season
  24. wind — to turn a key

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