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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. spring — of water
  3. staff — employees
  4. spring — the season
  5. lean — thin
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. roll — a list
  9. sharp — clever
  10. lean — to bend
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. staff — a stick
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. toast — bread
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. roll — a cake
  21. plane — a tool
  22. staff — employees
  23. pitch — completely
  24. spring — a coil

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