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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. pit — a hole
  3. spring — a coil
  4. ball — a dance
  5. can — to be able to
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. staff — employees
  8. ball — a great time
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. spring — of water
  12. march — music
  13. mine — for digging
  14. staff — employees
  15. spring — the season
  16. pit — in a race
  17. capital — money
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. can — a tin
  21. march — the month
  22. capital — a city
  23. can — a tin
  24. march — the month

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