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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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. spring — a coil
  3. band — a ring
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. spring — the season
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. lean — to bend
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. lean — thin
  11. spring — of water
  12. kid — to tease
  13. band — a music group
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. shower — rain
  17. kid — child
  18. shower — to wash
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. bowl — to roll

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