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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. spring — of water
  3. band — a ring
  4. season — of the year
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. can — to be able to
  7. press — a publisher
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. press — newspapers
  10. season — in sport
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. bound — obliged
  13. bound — tied together
  14. press — to push
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. spring — the season
  18. last — final
  19. can — a tin
  20. last — to go on
  21. band — a music group
  22. bound — certain
  23. can — a tin
  24. last — finally

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