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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 · perch · ground · jam · bowl · trunk · clip · season

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. spring — a coil
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. ground — crushed
  6. clip — to cut
  7. season — in sport
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. ground — a position
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. season — of the year
  16. spring — the season
  17. perch — the fish
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. clip — a video
  20. ground — the earth
  21. spring — of water
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. clip — for paper
  24. perch — for a bird

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