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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. spring — the season
  6. spring — a coil
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. deal — to handle
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. rash — a series
  11. spring — of water
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. rash — hasty
  16. bass — low music
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. vault — a safe
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. prune — to trim
  24. bass — the fish

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