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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. saw — the tool
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. cue — a hint
  6. cell — a phone
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. cue — for pool
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. cell — in biology
  11. bark — to shout
  12. spring — of water
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. spring — the season
  15. wind — moving air
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. saw — the tool
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. wind — moving air
  24. cue — a signal

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