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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. saw — the tool
  3. spring — a coil
  4. cold — an illness
  5. spring — of water
  6. wound — an injury
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. bark — to shout
  9. spring — the season
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. season — of the year
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. cold — not warm
  16. season — in sport
  17. wound — an injury
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. saw — the tool
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  24. racket — a loud noise

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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