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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 116 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: craft · spring · present · perch · cold · season · wax · kick

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. perch — the fish
  3. present — the time now
  4. cold — not warm
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. kick — in football
  7. present — there
  8. spring — a coil
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. season — in sport
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. spring — of water
  14. craft — boats
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. spring — the season
  19. cold — an illness
  20. wax — to grow
  21. craft — a skill
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. present — a gift
  24. kick — with a leg

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