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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. band — a music group
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. band — a ring
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. cue — a signal
  13. spring — a coil
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. cue — a hint
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. spring — of water
  20. pitch — completely
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. cue — for pool
  23. mine — for digging
  24. wind — to turn a key

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