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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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468
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: mine · racket · spring · mug · ground · saw · capital · bore

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. saw — the tool
  4. mug — a face
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. capital — money
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. ground — crushed
  10. spring — a coil
  11. capital — a city
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. mug — a cup
  14. spring — of water
  15. saw — the tool
  16. ground — a position
  17. spring — the season
  18. ground — the earth
  19. mug — to rob
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. bore — to tire
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. mine — for digging
  24. bore — to drill

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