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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 · lash · bark · face · stem · net · mine · saw

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. saw — the tool
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. face — to confront
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. saw — the tool
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. mine — for digging
  9. face — to point toward
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. net — for catching
  12. spring — a coil
  13. spring — the season
  14. bark — to shout
  15. net — after costs
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. spring — of water
  19. face — part of the head
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. stem — to come from
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. mine — an explosive

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