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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. kid — to tease
  3. present — a gift
  4. ground — crushed
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. ground — the earth
  7. ground — a position
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. current — happening now
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. spring — a coil
  12. current — electric
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. current — of water
  15. spring — of water
  16. club — for dancing
  17. present — there
  18. chip — to eat
  19. club — a group
  20. present — the time now
  21. kid — child
  22. chip — for betting
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. club — for golf

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