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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. spring — of water
  3. spring — a coil
  4. ground — the earth
  5. land — ground
  6. deal — to handle
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. squash — the sport
  10. swing — in golf
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. wax — for sculpting
  13. ground — a position
  14. swing — music
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. cap — of ice
  17. squash — to crush
  18. spring — the season
  19. land — a country
  20. swing — to play on
  21. wax — to grow
  22. ground — crushed
  23. cap — a lid
  24. cap — a hat

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