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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. spring — of water
  4. mark — a trace
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. scale — size or range
  7. march — music
  8. shower — rain
  9. shower — to wash
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. march — the month
  16. scale — in music
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. mark — a grade
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. spring — the season
  22. game — wild animals
  23. march — the month
  24. spring — a coil

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