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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. last — finally
  7. cold — not warm
  8. season — of the year
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. mug — a face
  11. season — in sport
  12. cold — an illness
  13. last — to go on
  14. foot — a measure
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. spring — a coil
  17. spring — the season
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. plane — a tool
  20. last — final
  21. mug — a cup
  22. mug — to rob
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. plane — an aircraft

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