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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: rock · kick · fan · net · spring · rule · spell · rash

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. rule — government
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. rash — a series
  5. rock — music
  6. rock — a stone
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. rash — hasty
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. rule — a law
  12. spell — letters
  13. spring — a coil
  14. spell — magic
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. spell — a short time
  17. spring — the season
  18. net — for catching
  19. kick — in football
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. spring — of water
  24. net — in sport

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