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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. band — a music group
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. chair — a leader
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. staff — employees
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. mine — for digging
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. spring — a coil
  13. mate — a partner
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. bear — the animal
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. staff — a stick
  19. spring — of water
  20. band — a ring
  21. bear — the animal
  22. staff — employees
  23. mate — a friend
  24. mate — to breed

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