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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. stock — goods
  3. can — a tin
  4. drill — the tool
  5. vault — a safe
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. drill — army training
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. can — to be able to
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. spring — a coil
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. mark — a grade
  15. stock — shares
  16. drill — a practice
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. spring — the season
  20. mark — a trace
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. can — a tin
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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