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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 hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. spring — a coil
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. bear — the animal
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. stock — goods
  8. cell — in biology
  9. hand — help
  10. cell — a phone
  11. stock — shares
  12. spring — the season
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. bear — the animal
  15. present — the time now
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. present — a gift
  18. sharp — clever
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. hand — in cards
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. present — there
  23. spring — of water
  24. mark — a grade

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