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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. spring — of water
  3. swing — in golf
  4. spell — magic
  5. spring — a coil
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. spell — a short time
  8. swing — to play on
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. degree — from a university
  16. swing — music
  17. spring — the season
  18. degree — an amount
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. mine — for digging
  21. spell — letters
  22. foot — a measure
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. degree — temperature

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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