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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 116 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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  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. spring — the season
  2. squash — the sport
  3. capital — a city
  4. mine — for digging
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. dip — to sink
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. cue — a signal
  16. cue — a hint
  17. squash — to crush
  18. spring — a coil
  19. capital — money
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. cue — for pool
  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