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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. mug — to rob
  3. spell — magic
  4. capital — money
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. mug — a cup
  7. mug — a face
  8. can — a tin
  9. dip — to sink
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. spring — of water
  14. capital — a city
  15. spell — letters
  16. craft — boats
  17. spell — a short time
  18. spring — the season
  19. can — to be able to
  20. craft — a skill
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. can — a tin
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. bay — a part 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