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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. spring — of water
  3. spring — the season
  4. staff — a stick
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. cell — in biology
  7. rash — a series
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. spring — a coil
  11. wind — moving air
  12. chip — for betting
  13. cell — a phone
  14. chip — to eat
  15. staff — employees
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. rash — hasty
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. wind — moving air
  24. staff — employees

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