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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. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. spring — of water
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. key — in music
  5. tube — a container
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. saw — the tool
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. lie — to recline
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. cold — an illness
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. spring — the season
  16. tube — the underground
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. plane — a tool
  19. cold — not warm
  20. key — the most important part
  21. key — for a lock
  22. spring — a coil
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. saw — the tool

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