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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.

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: staff · rest · spring · cold · club · cap · pitcher · can

  1. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cap — of ice
  4. rest — a break
  5. cap — a lid
  6. spring — of water
  7. spring — the season
  8. rest — what's left
  9. spring — a coil
  10. club — for dancing
  11. can — to be able to
  12. cap — a hat
  13. staff — employees
  14. club — a group
  15. club — for golf
  16. rest — what's left
  17. cold — not warm
  18. can — a tin
  19. staff — a stick
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. staff — employees
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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