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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 · band · cell · leaves · drill · bowl · racket · stock

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. band — a music group
  5. spring — the season
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. drill — army training
  8. cell — a phone
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. drill — the tool
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. spring — a coil
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. spring — of water
  15. stock — goods
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. drill — a practice
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. stock — shares
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. cell — in biology
  22. band — a ring
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. bowl — to roll

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