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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. capital — money
  4. season — of the year
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. game — wild animals
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. spring — of water
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. spring — a coil
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. game — a match
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. capital — a city
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. fork — in a road
  22. season — in sport
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. season — to add flavour

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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