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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. spring — a coil
  3. lean — thin
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. charge — a price
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. charge — in control
  9. spring — the season
  10. charge — electricity
  11. kid — child
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. kid — to tease
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. drill — a practice
  16. saw — the tool
  17. drill — army training
  18. saw — the tool
  19. season — in sport
  20. drill — the tool
  21. season — of the year
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. lean — to bend
  24. lean — to rest against

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