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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 120 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 don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. spring — a coil
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. field — a subject
  6. mark — a trace
  7. kid — child
  8. spring — of water
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. field — farmland
  11. field — for sport
  12. mate — a partner
  13. mark — a grade
  14. spring — the season
  15. kid — to tease
  16. mate — a friend
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. wind — moving air
  21. mate — to breed
  22. craft — a skill
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. craft — boats

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