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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. mine — for digging
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. mark — a trace
  6. wound — an injury
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. spring — of water
  13. cold — not warm
  14. cold — an illness
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. spring — the season
  17. mark — a grade
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. spring — a coil
  21. cell — in biology
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. wound — an injury

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