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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. mine — for digging
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. season — of the year
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. branch — a division
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. mug — to rob
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. season — in sport
  14. spring — a coil
  15. spring — the season
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. mug — a face
  19. mug — a cup
  20. stem — to come from
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. spring — of water
  24. bowl — a dish

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