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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 116 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
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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 · bay · mine · row · rush · ground · leaves · game

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. ground — a position
  4. spring — the season
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. mine — for digging
  7. game — a match
  8. spring — of water
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. rush — hurry
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. row — to paddle
  13. ground — crushed
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. ground — the earth
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. spring — a coil
  23. row — a line
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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