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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. spring — of water
  3. can — a tin
  4. staff — a stick
  5. clip — for paper
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. staff — employees
  9. can — a tin
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. clip — to cut
  13. wind — moving air
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. can — to be able to
  16. foot — a measure
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. spring — the season
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. wind — moving air
  21. staff — employees
  22. clip — a video
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. foot — part of the body

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