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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
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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: fine · snap · cold · court · key · tube · saw · spring

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. fine — all right
  3. spring — a coil
  4. saw — the tool
  5. tube — a container
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. key — in music
  8. tube — the underground
  9. key — the most important part
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. key — for a lock
  12. court — of a king
  13. spring — the season
  14. saw — the tool
  15. snap — to click
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cold — an illness
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. court — for sport
  20. spring — of water
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. fine — high quality

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