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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 112 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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. fall — to drop
  3. spring — of water
  4. net — after costs
  5. club — for golf
  6. club — for dancing
  7. spring — the season
  8. game — wild animals
  9. net — for catching
  10. club — a group
  11. saw — the tool
  12. fall — the season
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. chip — for betting
  15. spring — a coil
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. saw — the tool
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. net — in sport
  20. game — a match
  21. rush — hurry
  22. chip — to eat
  23. fall — to drop
  24. rush — to hurry

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