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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 120 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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. club — for dancing
  3. mate — a friend
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. mate — a partner
  7. mate — to breed
  8. bank — for money
  9. bank — of a river
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. bank — for money
  13. spring — the season
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. spring — a coil
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. club — for golf
  18. file — a tool
  19. stem — to come from
  20. file — a line of people
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. file — a document
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. club — a group

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