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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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. race — the arms race
  3. face — part of the head
  4. spring — the season
  5. cap — a lid
  6. race — a contest
  7. cap — a hat
  8. bore — to drill
  9. cold — an illness
  10. charge — electricity
  11. face — to point toward
  12. charge — in control
  13. cold — not warm
  14. bore — to tire
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. cap — of ice
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. face — to confront
  20. race — humankind
  21. saw — the tool
  22. charge — a price
  23. saw — the tool
  24. spring — a coil

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