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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. spring — of water
  3. present — there
  4. spring — the season
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. wax — to grow
  7. pop — music
  8. face — part of the head
  9. present — the time now
  10. ground — crushed
  11. pop — soda
  12. ground — the earth
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. bark — to shout
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. pop — to visit
  17. face — to point toward
  18. ground — a position
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. dip — to sink
  21. present — a gift
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. face — to confront
  24. wax — in the ear

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