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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: fall · spring · wake · pitch · mouse · staff · track · court

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. fall — to drop
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. staff — employees
  7. court — of law
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. fall — the season
  10. track — a song
  11. staff — employees
  12. wake — a trail
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. court — for sport
  16. court — of a king
  17. track — a path
  18. spring — a coil
  19. staff — a stick
  20. pitch — completely
  21. track — to keep track
  22. spring — the season
  23. fall — to drop
  24. pitch — a sports field

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