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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. season — of the year
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. ball — a great time
  5. ball — a dance
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. net — in sport
  9. bank — for money
  10. season — in sport
  11. kick — in football
  12. lean — to bend
  13. bank — for money
  14. spring — of water
  15. net — for catching
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. net — after costs
  19. spring — a coil
  20. spring — the season
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. bank — of a river
  23. lean — thin
  24. bat — the animal

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