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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. spring — of water
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. wind — moving air
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. net — in sport
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. net — for catching
  11. rush — hurry
  12. net — after costs
  13. season — of the year
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. season — in sport
  17. wind — moving air
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. plane — a tool
  23. wax — to grow
  24. spring — a coil

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