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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. swing — to play on
  4. spring — the season
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. band — a ring
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. spring — of water
  12. hand — help
  13. season — of the year
  14. spring — a coil
  15. swing — music
  16. swing — in golf
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. season — in sport
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. hand — in cards
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. band — a music group

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