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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: mine · spring · mug · rush · pitcher · kid · bear · arm

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. spring — the season
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. rush — hurry
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. mug — a face
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. mug — a cup
  14. mine — for digging
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. bear — the animal
  17. kid — to tease
  18. mug — to rob
  19. kid — child
  20. spring — of water
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. spring — a coil
  24. mine — belonging to me

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