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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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. arm — part of the body
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. fork — in a road
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. game — wild animals
  11. pitch — completely
  12. spring — a coil
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. shower — to wash
  18. stand — to bear
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. shower — rain
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — a match
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. wave — of the sea

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