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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 116 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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. spring — the season
  3. mug — to rob
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. spring — of water
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. band — a music group
  8. band — a ring
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cell — a phone
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. spring — a coil
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. mug — a face
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. mug — a cup
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. fork — in a road
  24. cell — in biology

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