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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: spring · pass · content · ground · straw · key · squash · stem

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. key — for a lock
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. content — happy
  5. key — in music
  6. key — the most important part
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. squash — the sport
  9. content — the amount
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. pass — a permit
  12. ground — a position
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. pass — to succeed
  16. spring — the season
  17. squash — to crush
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. stem — to come from
  21. ground — the earth
  22. ground — crushed
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. spring — a coil

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