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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. kid — to tease
  3. spring — the season
  4. rash — hasty
  5. field — a subject
  6. rash — a series
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. can — a tin
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. mark — a trace
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. field — farmland
  15. can — to be able to
  16. spring — a coil
  17. mark — a grade
  18. can — a tin
  19. mate — a partner
  20. mate — a friend
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. mate — to breed
  23. field — for sport
  24. kid — child

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