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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. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. staff — employees
  3. rock — music
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. hand — help
  6. spring — the season
  7. spring — a coil
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. capital — a city
  11. capital — money
  12. rock — a stone
  13. track — a song
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. staff — employees
  16. track — a path
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. track — to keep track
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. staff — a stick
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. spring — of water

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