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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. net — for catching
  3. staff — a stick
  4. net — after costs
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. spring — a coil
  7. spring — of water
  8. staff — employees
  9. key — for a lock
  10. net — in sport
  11. deal — to handle
  12. spring — the season
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. key — in music
  15. key — the most important part
  16. pitch — completely
  17. staff — employees
  18. court — of law
  19. court — of a king
  20. plane — a tool
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. court — for sport

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