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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. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. spring — the season
  3. spring — of water
  4. scale — in music
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. bear — the animal
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. spring — a coil
  15. last — finally
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. last — final
  19. sharp — clever
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. mine — for digging
  23. last — to go on
  24. scale — size or range

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