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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. season — of the year
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. present — the time now
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. bore — to drill
  9. spring — of water
  10. wound — an injury
  11. spring — a coil
  12. capital — money
  13. season — in sport
  14. tube — a container
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. wound — an injury
  17. tube — the underground
  18. capital — a city
  19. dip — to sink
  20. bore — to tire
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. present — there
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. present — a gift

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