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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. tube — the underground
  3. sharp — clever
  4. tube — a container
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. spring — a coil
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. court — of law
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. mate — a friend
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. court — of a king
  14. spring — the season
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. spring — of water
  17. ground — the earth
  18. mate — to breed
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. mate — a partner
  21. branch — a division
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. ground — crushed
  24. court — for sport

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