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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. firm — steady
  3. spring — of water
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. spring — a coil
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. object — to protest
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. capital — money
  10. wound — an injury
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. object — an aim
  13. pop — to visit
  14. capital — a city
  15. firm — decided
  16. pop — music
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. pop — soda
  20. firm — a company
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. spring — the season
  23. object — a thing
  24. wound — an injury

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