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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 120 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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. spring — the season
  4. wind — moving air
  5. can — to be able to
  6. spring — a coil
  7. can — a tin
  8. deal — to handle
  9. present — a gift
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. stock — shares
  13. content — the amount
  14. content — happy
  15. mine — for digging
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. wind — moving air
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. present — there
  20. present — the time now
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. can — a tin
  24. stock — goods

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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