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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. spring — a coil
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. spring — of water
  5. march — the month
  6. roll — a cake
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. march — music
  9. lie — to recline
  10. spell — magic
  11. cap — a hat
  12. cap — a lid
  13. spring — the season
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. cap — of ice
  16. march — the month
  17. spell — letters
  18. shower — rain
  19. squash — the sport
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. roll — a list
  23. spell — a short time
  24. squash — to crush

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