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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. bear — the animal
  3. spring — a coil
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. field — a subject
  6. bear — the animal
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — of water
  10. snap — to click
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. field — for sport
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. field — farmland
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. sharp — clever
  23. season — in sport
  24. season — of the year

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