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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
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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: hand · content · fine · wave · spring · staff · rule · mine

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. staff — employees
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. hand — in cards
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. hand — help
  9. spring — the season
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. rule — government
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. staff — employees
  15. content — happy
  16. staff — a stick
  17. rule — a law
  18. fine — all right
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. spring — of water
  21. fine — high quality
  22. spring — a coil
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. content — the amount

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