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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  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. season — to add flavour
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. march — music
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — of water
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. march — the month
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. march — the month
  11. firm — steady
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. firm — decided
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. spring — the season
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. season — of the year
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. bark — to shout
  23. firm — a company
  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