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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: plane · deal · spring · bowl · last · rule · stick · pop

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. pop — music
  3. rule — a law
  4. deal — to handle
  5. last — finally
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. last — final
  10. last — to go on
  11. spring — of water
  12. pop — soda
  13. spring — a coil
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. pop — to visit
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. plane — a tool
  22. rule — government
  23. rule — to rule out
  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