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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. spring — a coil
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. ground — crushed
  6. spring — the season
  7. ground — a position
  8. kid — child
  9. board — to get on
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. content — happy
  12. land — to come down
  13. land — a country
  14. ground — the earth
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. kid — to tease
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. land — ground
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. content — the amount
  22. board — a committee
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. deal — to handle

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