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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. bass — the fish
  3. board — a committee
  4. spring — the season
  5. board — to get on
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. court — for sport
  9. rest — what's left
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. court — of a king
  12. bass — low music
  13. land — a country
  14. rest — a break
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. lie — to recline
  17. court — of law
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. rest — what's left
  21. land — ground
  22. spring — a coil
  23. land — to come down
  24. lie — an untruth

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