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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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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: spring · mug · fan · mark · content · file · stock · mine

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. content — happy
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. file — a line of people
  7. mug — a face
  8. mark — a trace
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. spring — the season
  11. mark — a grade
  12. spring — a coil
  13. mug — to rob
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. mine — for digging
  16. stock — shares
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. stock — goods
  20. content — the amount
  21. file — a tool
  22. file — a document
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. mug — a cup

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