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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. prune — to trim
  5. bound — tied together
  6. bound — certain
  7. rock — a stone
  8. bore — to drill
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. pass — a permit
  12. field — farmland
  13. bound — obliged
  14. spring — of water
  15. bore — to tire
  16. spring — the season
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. rock — music
  19. prune — to trim
  20. field — for sport
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. spring — a coil
  23. field — a subject
  24. season — of the year

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