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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. spring — of water
  4. suit — to fit
  5. lean — thin
  6. suit — in cards
  7. season — of the year
  8. kid — to tease
  9. spring — a coil
  10. spell — magic
  11. lean — to bend
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. bark — to shout
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. spring — the season
  16. spell — letters
  17. land — to come down
  18. spell — a short time
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. kid — child
  22. land — a country
  23. suit — clothes
  24. land — ground

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