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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. kid — to tease
  3. kid — child
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. object — to protest
  6. fine — all right
  7. land — to come down
  8. fine — high quality
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. spring — of water
  11. scale — size or range
  12. key — in music
  13. object — a thing
  14. land — a country
  15. rest — a break
  16. spring — a coil
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. land — ground
  19. rest — what's left
  20. key — the most important part
  21. rest — what's left
  22. key — for a lock
  23. object — an aim
  24. scale — in music

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