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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 120 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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. spring — the season
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. rash — a series
  6. court — of a king
  7. rash — hasty
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. lean — thin
  11. spring — a coil
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. spring — of water
  14. pound — a weight
  15. lean — to bend
  16. snap — to click
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. court — for sport
  21. mine — for digging
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. court — of law

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