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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. firm — decided
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. spring — a coil
  7. press — a publisher
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. press — to push
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. court — for sport
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. dip — to sink
  14. net — in sport
  15. net — after costs
  16. spring — the season
  17. court — of law
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. court — of a king
  21. press — newspapers
  22. net — for catching
  23. firm — steady
  24. firm — a company

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