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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 · mark · content · lie · cold · mine · sharp · firm

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. spring — the season
  3. lie — to recline
  4. spring — a coil
  5. firm — decided
  6. mark — a trace
  7. mine — for digging
  8. cold — an illness
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. spring — of water
  11. content — the amount
  12. mark — to pay attention
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mark — a grade
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. firm — steady
  18. sharp — clever
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. content — happy
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. firm — a company
  24. cold — not warm

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