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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: court · ball · lash · ground · key · rest · spring · land

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. land — ground
  5. land — a country
  6. ball — a great time
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. ground — the earth
  9. ground — a position
  10. rest — what's left
  11. spring — of water
  12. court — for sport
  13. court — of law
  14. court — of a king
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. ball — a dance
  17. key — the most important part
  18. spring — a coil
  19. land — to come down
  20. key — in music
  21. rest — a break
  22. ground — crushed
  23. rest — what's left
  24. key — for a lock

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