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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. present — the time now
  3. spring — the season
  4. spring — of water
  5. ground — crushed
  6. present — a gift
  7. scale — size or range
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. perch — the fish
  10. court — of a king
  11. bear — the animal
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bear — the animal
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. ground — the earth
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. wound — an injury
  20. scale — in music
  21. court — for sport
  22. ground — a position
  23. court — of law
  24. present — there

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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