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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. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. march — the month
  3. spring — of water
  4. spring — a coil
  5. prune — to trim
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. present — the time now
  8. cap — a lid
  9. prune — to trim
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. spring — the season
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. shower — to wash
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. march — music
  16. wind — moving air
  17. cap — of ice
  18. present — there
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. present — a gift
  21. cap — a hat
  22. march — the month
  23. shower — rain
  24. wind — moving air

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