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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: bear · cold · cap · lean · coach · spring · net · staff

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. spring — a coil
  4. net — for catching
  5. bear — the animal
  6. staff — employees
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. bear — the animal
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cold — not warm
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. cap — of ice
  14. net — after costs
  15. cap — a lid
  16. staff — a stick
  17. spring — the season
  18. net — in sport
  19. lean — thin
  20. lean — to bend
  21. cap — a hat
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. staff — employees
  24. bear — to put up with

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