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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. mate — a friend
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. spring — a coil
  5. field — farmland
  6. ball — a dance
  7. club — for golf
  8. field — for sport
  9. press — newspapers
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. spring — the season
  12. press — to push
  13. ball — a great time
  14. club — a group
  15. wound — an injury
  16. press — a publisher
  17. club — for dancing
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. mate — to breed
  20. field — a subject
  21. mate — a partner
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. wound — an injury

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