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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: cell · drill · jam · rash · spring · march · spell · lie

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. spring — the season
  3. cell — in biology
  4. cell — a phone
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. spell — a short time
  7. drill — army training
  8. drill — a practice
  9. march — music
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. spring — of water
  12. spring — a coil
  13. spell — magic
  14. rash — hasty
  15. march — the month
  16. lie — to recline
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. spell — letters
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. march — the month
  24. rash — a series

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