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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 116 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. bound — obliged
  4. mark — a grade
  5. land — to come down
  6. bank — of a river
  7. bank — for money
  8. season — in sport
  9. drill — army training
  10. drill — the tool
  11. land — a country
  12. drill — a practice
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. land — ground
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. bound — certain
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. bank — for money
  19. snap — to click
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. mark — a trace
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. bound — tied together

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