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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. cap — a lid
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. spring — of water
  6. squash — the sport
  7. wax — to grow
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. mine — for digging
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. hand — in cards
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. date — the fruit
  15. hand — help
  16. board — a committee
  17. cap — a hat
  18. spring — a coil
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. cap — of ice
  23. board — to get on
  24. squash — to crush

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