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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 116 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. bound — tied together
  4. drill — army training
  5. bank — for money
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. drill — the tool
  10. season — in sport
  11. field — a subject
  12. field — farmland
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. shower — to wash
  16. bank — of a river
  17. drill — a practice
  18. bound — obliged
  19. bound — certain
  20. shower — rain
  21. field — for sport
  22. lie — to recline
  23. bank — for money
  24. lie — an untruth

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