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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 124 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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. spring — a coil
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. sharp — clever
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. shower — to wash
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. saw — the tool
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. squash — the sport
  15. squash — to crush
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. spring — the season
  19. shower — rain
  20. tube — the underground
  21. saw — the tool
  22. tube — a container
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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