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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. mine — for digging
  5. object — a thing
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. spring — of water
  9. march — the month
  10. march — music
  11. wound — an injury
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. object — an aim
  18. pitch — completely
  19. spring — the season
  20. dip — to sink
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. object — to protest
  23. spring — a coil
  24. march — the month

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