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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 water is too ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. spring — of water
  3. object — an aim
  4. object — to protest
  5. cold — an illness
  6. bear — the animal
  7. spring — the season
  8. key — for a lock
  9. key — in music
  10. hand — help
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. object — a thing
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. hand — in cards
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. board — to get on
  17. key — the most important part
  18. spring — a coil
  19. mark — a trace
  20. bear — the animal
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. mark — a grade
  23. board — a committee
  24. bear — to put up with

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