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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. deal — to handle
  4. spring — a coil
  5. season — of the year
  6. hand — in cards
  7. spring — the season
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bark — to shout
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. stem — to come from
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. season — in sport
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. hand — help
  17. craft — boats
  18. press — a publisher
  19. craft — a skill
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. press — newspapers
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. press — to push

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