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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. pop — to visit
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. spell — a short time
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. branch — a division
  9. rush — hurry
  10. spring — a coil
  11. spell — magic
  12. content — the amount
  13. spring — the season
  14. wake — a trail
  15. spell — letters
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. pop — music
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. pop — soda
  21. content — happy
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. season — of the year
  24. spring — of water

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