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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. ground — crushed
  6. land — ground
  7. spell — magic
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — a coil
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. land — a country
  12. ground — the earth
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. land — to come down
  15. deal — to handle
  16. season — of the year
  17. spring — of water
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. spell — a short time
  22. season — in sport
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. ground — a position

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