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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: arm · game · bulb · spring · hide · track · march · last

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. bulb — for light
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. track — to keep track
  6. game — a match
  7. march — music
  8. track — a song
  9. spring — the season
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. last — final
  12. spring — a coil
  13. track — a path
  14. last — to go on
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. bulb — for light
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. march — the month
  20. game — wild animals
  21. march — the month
  22. spring — of water
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. game — a kind of play

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