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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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468
Word bank
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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. kick — in football
  3. spring — the season
  4. spring — of water
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. spring — a coil
  10. scale — in music
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. rash — a series
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. roll — a list
  18. season — in sport
  19. roll — a cake
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. rash — hasty
  23. scale — size or range
  24. bark — to shout

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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