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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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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: march · pound · spring · tube · snap · pass · cell · bowl

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. pound — a weight
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. snap — to click
  6. spring — of water
  7. tube — the underground
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. spring — the season
  11. cell — in biology
  12. spring — a coil
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. march — music
  17. pass — a permit
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. tube — a container
  22. march — the month
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. march — the month

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