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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. fork — in a road
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. season — of the year
  5. plane — a tool
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. wind — moving air
  8. pop — music
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. season — in sport
  11. ball — a great time
  12. spell — a short time
  13. spring — of water
  14. spell — magic
  15. wind — moving air
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. pop — to visit
  18. spell — letters
  19. spring — the season
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. ball — a dance
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. pop — soda

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