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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 124 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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. court — of law
  6. season — of the year
  7. spring — of water
  8. mug — a cup
  9. mug — to rob
  10. season — in sport
  11. rest — what's left
  12. mug — a face
  13. court — for sport
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. court — of a king
  16. spring — a coil
  17. mark — a trace
  18. mark — a grade
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. spring — the season
  21. mine — for digging
  22. rest — what's left
  23. rest — a break
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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