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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. bear — the animal
  6. stock — shares
  7. spring — of water
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. spell — a short time
  10. spring — a coil
  11. spell — magic
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. bear — the animal
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. spell — letters
  18. shower — to wash
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. stock — goods
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. shower — rain
  24. wind — to turn a key

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