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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. deal — to handle
  3. spring — the season
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. spring — of water
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. spring — a coil
  10. season — in sport
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. plane — a tool
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. bound — tied together
  15. court — of a king
  16. court — for sport
  17. last — final
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. bound — certain
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. bound — obliged
  22. last — finally
  23. last — to go on
  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