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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: spring · club · bark · straw · deal · ruler

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. 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. spring — a coil
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. club — for golf
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. deal — to handle
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. club — a group
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. bark — to shout
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. spring — the season
  17. club — for dancing
  18. 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