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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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. season — in sport
  4. spring — a coil
  5. sharp — clever
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. charge — electricity
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. season — of the year
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. rash — a series
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. rash — hasty
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. charge — a price
  22. deal — to handle
  23. perch — the fish
  24. charge — in control

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