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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. spring — the season
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. wound — an injury
  5. fine — all right
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. band — a music group
  9. bulb — for light
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. wound — an injury
  12. spring — a coil
  13. band — a ring
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. spring — of water
  17. game — a match
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. fine — high quality
  20. game — wild animals
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bowl — to roll

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