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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 124 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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. game — wild animals
  3. spring — a coil
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. tube — the underground
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. lie — to recline
  12. spring — the season
  13. game — a match
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. band — a music group
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. squash — the sport
  19. band — a ring
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. squash — to crush
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. tube — a container
  24. lash — an eyelash

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