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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. spring — a coil
  3. present — the time now
  4. bark — to shout
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. cue — a hint
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. hand — help
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. squash — the sport
  14. spring — of water
  15. present — a gift
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. fine — high quality
  18. cue — a signal
  19. hand — in cards
  20. fine — all right
  21. squash — to crush
  22. cue — for pool
  23. present — there
  24. mine — for digging

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