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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 116 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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. face — to confront
  3. spring — a coil
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. spell — a short time
  6. present — there
  7. spell — magic
  8. mine — for digging
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. bulb — for light
  12. face — part of the head
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. face — to point toward
  16. bulb — for light
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. spell — letters
  19. present — the time now
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. present — a gift
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. spring — the season
  24. calf — a young animal

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