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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 116 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: rule · staff · key · spring · hand · game · bear · bass

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. key — for a lock
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. key — in music
  5. game — a match
  6. spring — the season
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. hand — help
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. hand — in cards
  12. key — the most important part
  13. staff — employees
  14. rule — government
  15. bear — the animal
  16. staff — a stick
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. game — wild animals
  19. rule — a law
  20. spring — a coil
  21. bear — the animal
  22. spring — of water
  23. bass — low music
  24. bass — the fish

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