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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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. field — farmland
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. net — in sport
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. vault — a safe
  8. net — for catching
  9. tear — from crying
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. last — finally
  12. safe — a strongbox
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. last — final
  16. tear — from crying
  17. spring — the season
  18. field — a subject
  19. tear — to rip
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. field — for sport
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. last — to go on
  24. net — after costs

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