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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. net — for catching
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. spring — a coil
  6. bank — of a river
  7. cell — a phone
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. chair — a leader
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — to trim
  15. bank — for money
  16. net — after costs
  17. net — in sport
  18. bank — for money
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. cell — in biology
  23. spring — the season
  24. rush — hurry

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