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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 120 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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. track — a song
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. bass — the fish
  7. track — a path
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. deal — to handle
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. bass — low music
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. sharp — clever
  18. spring — the season
  19. track — to keep track
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. spring — a coil
  22. mine — for digging
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. bass — the instrument

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