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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. tube — a container
  3. spring — of water
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. charge — electricity
  6. ball — a dance
  7. tube — the underground
  8. land — ground
  9. land — to come down
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. season — in sport
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. plane — a tool
  16. season — of the year
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. charge — a price
  21. charge — in control
  22. ball — a great time
  23. spring — the season
  24. land — a country

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