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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. field — for sport
  3. roll — a list
  4. spring — of water
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. rock — a stone
  8. roll — a cake
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. plane — a tool
  13. field — a subject
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. mine — for digging
  17. field — farmland
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. spring — the season
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. rock — music

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