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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: lash · prune · game · wind · mate · spring · bear · scale

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. prune — to trim
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. wind — moving air
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. bear — the animal
  8. spring — of water
  9. mate — a partner
  10. bear — the animal
  11. game — wild animals
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. spring — the season
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. wind — moving air
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. mate — to breed
  20. game — a match
  21. prune — to trim
  22. scale — in music
  23. mate — a friend
  24. scale — size or range

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