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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: chip · bark · mark · face · spring · bulb · coach · net

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. mark — a grade
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. net — after costs
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. spring — the season
  8. bark — to shout
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. face — to confront
  11. bulb — for light
  12. chip — for betting
  13. face — to point toward
  14. mark — a trace
  15. bulb — for light
  16. spring — of water
  17. net — in sport
  18. face — part of the head
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. net — for catching
  24. chip — to eat

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