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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. spring — a coil
  3. spring — of water
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. spring — the season
  6. bark — to shout
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. cap — a lid
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. cap — of ice
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. game — a match
  17. stem — to come from
  18. pit — in a race
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. cap — a hat
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. game — wild animals
  24. pit — a hole

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