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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. cue — for pool
  4. last — final
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. ground — crushed
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. last — finally
  10. spring — a coil
  11. shower — to wash
  12. ground — a position
  13. land — to come down
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. cue — a signal
  16. last — to go on
  17. ground — the earth
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. land — ground
  20. spring — the season
  21. cue — a hint
  22. shower — rain
  23. land — a country
  24. hide — to keep secret

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