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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. spring — of water
  6. spring — a coil
  7. mark — a grade
  8. saw — the tool
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. net — after costs
  11. saw — the tool
  12. rash — hasty
  13. net — for catching
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. squash — the sport
  16. lean — to bend
  17. net — in sport
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. mark — a trace
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. squash — to crush
  23. lean — thin
  24. rash — a series

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