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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. tear — from crying
  3. spell — letters
  4. cap — a lid
  5. cap — of ice
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. march — music
  8. march — the month
  9. rule — a law
  10. tear — to rip
  11. club — for dancing
  12. spell — magic
  13. club — for golf
  14. spring — the season
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. march — the month
  17. cap — a hat
  18. rush — hurry
  19. rule — government
  20. tear — from crying
  21. club — a group
  22. spring — a coil
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. spell — a short time

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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