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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 116 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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. spring — the season
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. key — for a lock
  5. key — in music
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. tube — a container
  9. pit — a hole
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. capital — a city
  13. spring — a coil
  14. mine — for digging
  15. capital — money
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. branch — a division
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. pit — in a race
  20. key — the most important part
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tube — the underground
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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