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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. staff — employees
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. fall — the season
  6. spring — the season
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. track — a song
  9. staff — employees
  10. can — to be able to
  11. season — of the year
  12. can — a tin
  13. track — a path
  14. fall — to drop
  15. mine — for digging
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. spring — of water
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. fall — to drop
  20. spring — a coil
  21. track — to keep track
  22. can — a tin
  23. staff — a stick
  24. season — in sport

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