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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.

Make a worksheet

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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. spring — of water
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. spring — the season
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. branch — a division
  9. fine — high quality
  10. spring — a coil
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. plane — a tool
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. fine — a penalty

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