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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: arm · row · spring · bowl · stand · mine · net · file

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. mine — for digging
  4. row — a line
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. file — a line of people
  8. spring — a coil
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. file — a document
  13. net — in sport
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. net — after costs
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. stand — to bear
  19. net — for catching
  20. row — to paddle
  21. spring — of water
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. file — a tool
  24. row — a quarrel

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