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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. sharp — clever
  3. current — electric
  4. suit — in cards
  5. cell — in biology
  6. cell — a phone
  7. season — in sport
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. suit — to fit
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. suit — clothes
  13. spring — of water
  14. scale — in music
  15. spring — a coil
  16. club — a group
  17. current — happening now
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. spring — the season
  20. scale — size or range
  21. current — of water
  22. club — for dancing
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. club — for golf

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