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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. spring — of water
  3. rush — hurry
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. spring — the season
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. field — a subject
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bulb — for light
  12. pitch — completely
  13. spring — a coil
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. field — for sport
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. row — to paddle
  22. row — a line
  23. field — farmland
  24. rush — to hurry

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