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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. object — an aim
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. wax — to grow
  5. object — to protest
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. net — after costs
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. net — for catching
  10. spring — a coil
  11. spring — the season
  12. net — in sport
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. branch — a division
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. object — a thing
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. wax — for sculpting

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