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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. court — of law
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. rest — what's left
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. spring — of water
  9. court — for sport
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. court — of a king
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. bear — the animal
  14. rest — a break
  15. content — the amount
  16. rest — what's left
  17. content — happy
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. spring — the season
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. bear — the animal
  24. content — videos and posts

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