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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. cell — a phone
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. cell — in biology
  5. shower — rain
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. charge — in control
  8. charge — electricity
  9. charge — a price
  10. plane — a tool
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. lean — thin
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. lean — to bend
  17. spring — a coil
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. spring — the season
  23. shower — to wash
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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