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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 strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. rest — what's left
  3. spring — the season
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. sharp — clever
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. ball — a great time
  9. firm — steady
  10. wind — moving air
  11. land — a country
  12. land — ground
  13. rest — a break
  14. spring — of water
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. dip — to sink
  17. land — to come down
  18. firm — a company
  19. firm — decided
  20. ball — a dance
  21. spring — a coil
  22. rest — what's left
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. sharp — exactly

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