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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. net — for catching
  3. cap — a lid
  4. rock — a stone
  5. cap — of ice
  6. spell — magic
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. net — in sport
  9. season — of the year
  10. net — after costs
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. season — in sport
  13. spell — letters
  14. spell — a short time
  15. cap — a hat
  16. spring — of water
  17. spring — a coil
  18. spring — the season

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