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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. key — the most important part
  3. roll — a cake
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. game — a match
  6. roll — a list
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. game — wild animals
  13. spring — the season
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. key — in music
  17. snap — to click
  18. hand — help
  19. spring — of water
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. hand — in cards
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. key — for a lock

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