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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. spring — a coil
  3. key — for a lock
  4. rest — what's left
  5. net — for catching
  6. fine — all right
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. fine — high quality
  9. rest — what's left
  10. net — after costs
  11. bore — to drill
  12. spring — the season
  13. bore — to tire
  14. wind — moving air
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. spring — of water
  17. hand — help
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. wind — moving air
  20. hand — in cards
  21. key — in music
  22. net — in sport
  23. key — the most important part
  24. wind — to turn a key

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