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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: shower · stick · trunk · net · fine · dip · key · spring

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. net — in sport
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. spring — a coil
  5. key — for a lock
  6. net — after costs
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. fine — all right
  9. key — in music
  10. shower — to wash
  11. net — for catching
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. shower — rain
  15. spring — the season
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. dip — to sink
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. spring — of water
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. fine — high quality
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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