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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 124 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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. key — the most important part
  3. hand — help
  4. court — of a king
  5. spring — of water
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. bulb — for light
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. bulb — for light
  11. season — of the year
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. capital — a city
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. key — in music
  16. capital — money
  17. key — for a lock
  18. foot — a measure
  19. court — of law
  20. spring — the season
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. court — for sport
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. season — in 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