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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. spring — the season
  4. last — to go on
  5. bear — the animal
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. last — final
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. cell — in biology
  11. last — finally
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. board — a committee
  16. cell — a phone
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. press — to push
  19. press — newspapers
  20. press — a publisher
  21. season — of the year
  22. spring — of water
  23. board — to get on
  24. season — in sport

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