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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.

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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 · pitcher · season · mate · rule · content · bound · mark

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. content — the amount
  3. spring — of water
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. rule — a law
  7. mark — a grade
  8. spring — the season
  9. bound — obliged
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. content — happy
  14. season — of the year
  15. mark — a trace
  16. season — in sport
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. rule — government
  19. bound — certain
  20. spring — a coil
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. bound — tied together
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mate — a friend

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