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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. ground — crushed
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. ground — a position
  8. tube — the underground
  9. spring — a coil
  10. tube — a container
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. spring — the season
  14. content — the amount
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. content — happy
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. ground — the earth
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. safe — out of danger

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