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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.

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: season · bore · court · key · present · spring · board · cell

  1. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of a king
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. spring — a coil
  4. spring — the season
  5. present — there
  6. spring — of water
  7. cell — a phone
  8. season — of the year
  9. key — for a lock
  10. present — a gift
  11. cell — in biology
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. bore — to drill
  15. bore — to tire
  16. board — to get on
  17. court — for sport
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. season — in sport
  20. present — the time now
  21. court — of law
  22. board — a committee
  23. key — the most important part
  24. key — in music

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