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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: prune · bulb · spring · pop · object · face · coach · net

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. pop — soda
  3. spring — of water
  4. bulb — for light
  5. pop — to visit
  6. bulb — for light
  7. net — for catching
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. face — to confront
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. object — a thing
  13. object — an aim
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. net — after costs
  16. pop — music
  17. prune — to trim
  18. face — to point toward
  19. net — in sport
  20. spring — a coil
  21. face — part of the head
  22. object — to protest
  23. prune — to trim
  24. coach — a trainer

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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