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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 120 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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. spring — a coil
  3. bound — obliged
  4. degree — temperature
  5. chip — to eat
  6. chip — for betting
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. bound — certain
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. bound — tied together
  12. rash — hasty
  13. spring — of water
  14. rock — music
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. spring — the season
  18. rash — a series
  19. degree — from a university
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. rock — a stone
  22. degree — an amount
  23. rest — what's left
  24. rest — what's left

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