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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. spring — of water
  3. spring — a coil
  4. pop — soda
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. pop — music
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. wound — an injury
  9. bear — the animal
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. pitch — completely
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. wound — an injury
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. kick — in football
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. pop — to visit
  23. bear — the animal
  24. racket — for tennis

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