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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
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: bear · degree · stick · board · lie · mine · spring · file

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. mine — for digging
  3. lie — to recline
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. degree — from a university
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. degree — an amount
  9. spring — of water
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. degree — temperature
  13. file — a tool
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. board — a committee
  16. file — a document
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. file — a line of people
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. board — to get on
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. spring — the season
  23. bear — the animal
  24. spring — a coil

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