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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. mine — for digging
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. content — the amount
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. file — a document
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. file — a tool
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. spring — a coil
  15. spring — the season
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. pound — a weight
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. content — happy
  21. file — a line of people
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. spring — of water
  24. cabinet — ministers

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