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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: cell · row · content · spring · leaves · fall · fork · fine

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. fine — high quality
  3. row — to paddle
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fine — all right
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. fork — in a road
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. fall — the season
  12. content — happy
  13. fall — to drop
  14. cell — a phone
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. content — the amount
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. row — a line
  20. cell — in biology
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. spring — of water
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. spring — a coil

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