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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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. straw — dry grass
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. season — in sport
  9. roll — a cake
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. spring — of water
  14. roll — a list
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. spell — letters
  18. season — of the year
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. swing — to play on
  21. swing — in golf
  22. swing — music
  23. spell — magic
  24. spell — a short time

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