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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: march · spring · nail · cold · vault · bore · fine · racket

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. march — the month
  4. march — the month
  5. spring — of water
  6. march — music
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. cold — not warm
  14. fine — high quality
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. cold — an illness
  17. bore — to drill
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. fine — all right
  21. bore — to tire
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. spring — a coil
  24. vault — a safe

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