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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 · bulb · pass · cold · wind · game · lie · deal

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. pass — a permit
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. spring — the season
  5. bulb — for light
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. game — wild animals
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. spring — of water
  14. bulb — for light
  15. cold — an illness
  16. deal — to handle
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. game — a match
  19. wind — moving air
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. cold — not warm
  23. spring — a coil
  24. lie — to recline

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