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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 116 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: staff · spring · racket · key · rest · dip · snap · mate

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. spring — the season
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. key — the most important part
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. staff — a stick
  7. spring — a coil
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. mate — a partner
  12. snap — to click
  13. staff — employees
  14. rest — what's left
  15. mate — to breed
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. spring — of water
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. dip — to sink
  20. key — in music
  21. key — for a lock
  22. rest — what's left
  23. staff — employees
  24. rest — a break

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