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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · mouse · cold · root · key · bound · arm · file

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. file — a line of people
  4. bound — tied together
  5. file — a tool
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. root — the cause
  8. key — for a lock
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. bound — certain
  12. spring — the season
  13. root — of a plant
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. spring — of water
  16. root — of a word
  17. key — in music
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cold — not warm
  20. key — the most important part
  21. spring — a coil
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. bound — obliged
  24. file — a document

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