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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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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. kick — in football
  3. spring — the season
  4. key — for a lock
  5. dip — to sink
  6. key — the most important part
  7. chair — a leader
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. spring — of water
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. key — in music
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. sharp — clever

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