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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. cell — a phone
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cell — in biology
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. mine — for digging
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. wax — to grow
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. charge — a price
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. pass — to succeed
  15. spring — the season
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. spring — of water
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. charge — in control
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. pass — a permit
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. charge — electricity

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