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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. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. spell — letters
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. spring — the season
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. scale — size or range
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. pound — a weight
  11. snap — to click
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. spring — a coil
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. lean — thin
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. scale — in music
  21. lean — to bend
  22. spell — magic
  23. spell — a short time
  24. pound — to hit hard

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