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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. rest — a break
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. mine — for digging
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. kick — in football
  10. plane — a tool
  11. stock — shares
  12. march — the month
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. spring — the season
  15. spring — of water
  16. march — the month
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. rest — what's left
  19. stock — goods
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. rest — what's left
  23. march — music
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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