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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. chip — to eat
  3. season — of the year
  4. can — to be able to
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. can — a tin
  7. can — a tin
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. season — in sport
  11. spring — the season
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. spring — a coil
  15. march — music
  16. march — the month
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. march — the month
  20. chip — for betting
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. stem — to come from
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. chip — in a computer

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