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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. wake — a trail
  3. field — for sport
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. fine — all right
  6. key — the most important part
  7. field — farmland
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. key — in music
  12. spring — the season
  13. swing — to play on
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. key — for a lock
  16. dip — to sink
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. board — to get on
  19. field — a subject
  20. fine — high quality
  21. spring — a coil
  22. board — a committee
  23. swing — music
  24. swing — in golf

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