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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. spring — of water
  3. key — the most important part
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. pop — soda
  6. firm — a company
  7. season — in sport
  8. pop — music
  9. spring — a coil
  10. hand — help
  11. cell — a phone
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. spring — the season
  15. season — of the year
  16. key — for a lock
  17. firm — decided
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. firm — steady
  20. key — in music
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. hand — in cards
  23. pop — to visit
  24. pitcher — a jug

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