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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: pound · spring · wound · bulb · saw · net · fine · leaves

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. spring — of water
  3. wound — an injury
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. saw — the tool
  8. wound — an injury
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. pound — a weight
  11. fine — high quality
  12. bulb — for light
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. net — in sport
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. saw — the tool
  18. net — for catching
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. bulb — for light
  22. spring — the season
  23. spring — a coil
  24. net — after costs

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