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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 120 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: bulb · tear · bank · lie · land · hide · spring · mug

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. spring — a coil
  3. mug — a cup
  4. spring — the season
  5. tear — from crying
  6. mug — a face
  7. tear — from crying
  8. lie — to recline
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. land — a country
  12. bank — for money
  13. tear — to rip
  14. mug — to rob
  15. bank — for money
  16. bulb — for light
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. bank — of a river
  22. land — ground
  23. land — to come down
  24. bulb — for light

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