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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. When will it ________________ you to start?
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. wound — an injury
  3. suit — clothes
  4. clip — to cut
  5. date — the fruit
  6. net — in sport
  7. spring — a coil
  8. spring — the season
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. mug — to rob
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. suit — in cards
  14. suit — to fit
  15. net — after costs
  16. net — for catching
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. mug — a cup
  20. wound — an injury
  21. clip — a video
  22. clip — for paper
  23. mug — a face
  24. pitcher — a jug

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