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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 · bore · trunk · coach · board · file · ground · mate

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. ground — crushed
  3. ground — the earth
  4. board — a committee
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. bore — to drill
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. bore — to tire
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. spring — a coil
  12. file — a tool
  13. file — a line of people
  14. spring — of water
  15. mate — a friend
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. mate — to breed
  18. file — a document
  19. board — to get on
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. mate — a partner
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. ground — a position

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