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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: coach · cell · key · foot · spring · fall · game · land

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. land — a country
  3. spring — a coil
  4. key — the most important part
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. fall — the season
  7. land — to come down
  8. land — ground
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. cell — a phone
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. cell — in biology
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. spring — of water
  16. fall — to drop
  17. key — in music
  18. key — for a lock
  19. game — wild animals
  20. fall — to drop
  21. game — a match
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. foot — a measure
  24. coach — a trainer

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