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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 120 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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. face — to confront
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. face — to point toward
  5. mate — to breed
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. kick — in football
  9. spring — a coil
  10. object — a thing
  11. object — an aim
  12. face — part of the head
  13. object — to protest
  14. bark — to shout
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. mate — a friend
  17. spring — the season
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. mate — a partner
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. branch — a division
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. fan — to cool the air

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