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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. court — for sport
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. band — a music group
  8. swing — music
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. court — of a king
  11. key — for a lock
  12. band — a ring
  13. spring — the season
  14. spring — of water
  15. prune — to trim
  16. swing — to play on
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. key — the most important part
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. swing — in golf
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. prune — to trim
  23. key — in music
  24. court — of law

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