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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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. fine — high quality
  6. face — to confront
  7. prune — to trim
  8. staff — employees
  9. bulb — for light
  10. spring — the season
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. face — part of the head
  13. face — to point toward
  14. spring — a coil
  15. staff — a stick
  16. wind — moving air
  17. bulb — for light
  18. staff — employees
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. prune — to trim
  23. fine — all right
  24. fine — a penalty

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