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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. spring — of water
  3. lie — to recline
  4. cue — for pool
  5. file — a line of people
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. field — farmland
  8. field — a subject
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. file — a document
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. fall — to drop
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. spring — the season
  15. file — a tool
  16. field — for sport
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. fall — the season
  22. fall — to drop
  23. cue — a hint
  24. cue — a signal

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