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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. field — farmland
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. mine — for digging
  5. bore — to tire
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. bear — the animal
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. spring — of water
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. ball — a dance
  12. tube — the underground
  13. bore — to drill
  14. craft — boats
  15. craft — a skill
  16. bear — the animal
  17. ball — a great time
  18. spring — a coil
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. tube — a container
  21. spring — the season
  22. field — a subject
  23. field — for sport
  24. tube — in a tire

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