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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 120 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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. pit — in a race
  3. chair — a leader
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. hand — in cards
  8. can — to be able to
  9. branch — a division
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. spring — of water
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. season — of the year
  14. can — a tin
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. plane — a tool
  17. spring — a coil
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. pit — a hole
  20. hand — help
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. spring — the season
  24. season — in sport

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