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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. spring — of water
  3. swing — to play on
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. swing — in golf
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. stock — goods
  8. root — the cause
  9. press — a publisher
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. press — to push
  13. spring — a coil
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. stock — shares
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. root — of a word
  18. press — newspapers
  19. swing — music
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. root — of a plant

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