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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. spring — a coil
  3. spring — of water
  4. face — to point toward
  5. press — to push
  6. swing — music
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. mine — for digging
  12. club — for golf
  13. swing — to play on
  14. club — a group
  15. face — to confront
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. spring — the season
  18. branch — a division
  19. club — for dancing
  20. press — newspapers
  21. press — a publisher
  22. face — part of the head
  23. swing — in golf
  24. mine — an explosive

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