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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. spring — a coil
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. mine — for digging
  7. drill — army training
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. spring — of water
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. drill — a practice
  13. craft — a skill
  14. craft — boats
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. drill — the tool
  17. bark — to shout
  18. season — in sport
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. spring — the season
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. vault — a safe
  24. craft — a handicraft

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