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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. bat — the animal
  3. spring — the season
  4. season — of the year
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. season — in sport
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. spring — of water
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. perch — the fish
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. game — wild animals
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. vault — a safe
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. game — a match
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. fork — in a road

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