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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: jam · mate · mine · ground · spring · race · chest · foot

  1. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — a contest
  2. mine — for digging
  3. spring — a coil
  4. chest — of your body
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. mate — a friend
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. ground — crushed
  9. race — humankind
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. ground — the earth
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. ground — a position
  15. race — the arms race
  16. spring — the season
  17. mate — to breed
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — a box
  21. mate — a partner
  22. spring — of water
  23. foot — a measure
  24. foot — part of the body

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