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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. mark — a grade
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. spring — the season
  6. plane — a tool
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. bore — to tire
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. game — wild animals
  12. spring — of water
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. pass — a permit
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. season — of the year
  17. spring — a coil
  18. bore — to drill
  19. season — in sport
  20. mark — a trace
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. game — a match
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. leaves — lets stay

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