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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 120 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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. tear — from crying
  3. season — of the year
  4. press — newspapers
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. press — a publisher
  7. content — the amount
  8. bulb — for light
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. tear — to rip
  12. spring — the season
  13. season — in sport
  14. shower — to wash
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. spring — of water
  17. content — happy
  18. bulb — for light
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. tear — from crying
  21. press — to push
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. shower — rain

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