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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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Word bank
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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 · last · pop · bulb · wind · chair · board · tear

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. spring — the season
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. chair — a leader
  5. tear — from crying
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. pop — soda
  8. pop — music
  9. spring — of water
  10. bulb — for light
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. spring — a coil
  14. tear — to rip
  15. board — to get on
  16. last — final
  17. wind — moving air
  18. last — finally
  19. wind — moving air
  20. pop — to visit
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. tear — from crying
  23. bulb — for light
  24. last — to go on

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