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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. fork — in a road
  3. tear — to rip
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. spring — the season
  10. kid — to tease
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. spring — a coil
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. tear — from crying
  15. branch — a division
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. tear — from crying
  18. rush — hurry
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. kid — child
  24. rush — a thrill

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