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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 116 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 assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. rest — a break
  3. spring — a coil
  4. fine — high quality
  5. rest — what's left
  6. spring — of water
  7. land — a country
  8. rest — what's left
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. hand — help
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. land — ground
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. land — to come down
  18. ground — the earth
  19. ground — a position
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. ground — crushed
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. hand — in cards
  24. spring — the season

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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