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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. spring — a coil
  3. firm — a company
  4. capital — a city
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. rash — hasty
  7. rash — a series
  8. firm — decided
  9. firm — steady
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. capital — money
  13. race — the arms race
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. spring — the season
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. race — humankind
  18. race — a contest
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. dip — to sink
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. wave — 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