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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. spring — of water
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. root — the cause
  5. object — a thing
  6. field — a subject
  7. field — farmland
  8. stock — goods
  9. object — an aim
  10. wake — a trail
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. object — to protest
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. field — for sport
  19. root — of a word
  20. root — of a plant
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. spring — the season
  24. stock — shares

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