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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. ground — crushed
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. rock — a stone
  5. spring — a coil
  6. prune — to trim
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. spring — the season
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. prune — to trim
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. cap — a hat
  14. wound — an injury
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. cap — of ice
  19. wound — an injury
  20. ground — a position
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. cap — a lid
  23. ground — the earth
  24. rock — music

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