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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 116 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 hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. band — a music group
  3. net — in sport
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. season — of the year
  6. can — to be able to
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. spring — the season
  9. swing — music
  10. lean — thin
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. season — in sport
  13. net — for catching
  14. can — a tin
  15. lean — to bend
  16. spring — a coil
  17. swing — in golf
  18. net — after costs
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. swing — to play on
  21. band — a ring
  22. pass — a permit
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. can — a tin

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