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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: nail · spring · leaves · bound · squash · season · net · game

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. game — a match
  3. squash — the sport
  4. season — in sport
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. bound — certain
  7. game — wild animals
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. spring — a coil
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. bound — obliged
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. bound — tied together
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. squash — to crush
  16. season — of the year
  17. net — for catching
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. net — after costs
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. spring — of water
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. spring — the season

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