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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. plane — a tool
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. bound — tied together
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. court — of a king
  8. net — for catching
  9. spring — the season
  10. spring — of water
  11. ground — the earth
  12. spring — a coil
  13. bound — obliged
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. net — in sport
  19. net — after costs
  20. ground — a position
  21. ground — crushed
  22. court — for sport
  23. bound — certain
  24. court — of law

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