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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. mark — a trace
  4. cold — not warm
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. lean — thin
  7. cold — an illness
  8. pit — in a race
  9. can — to be able to
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. spring — a coil
  13. can — a tin
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. pit — a hole
  16. can — a tin
  17. mark — a grade
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. spring — of water
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. lean — to bend

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