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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.

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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: present · season · spring · file · cap · land · lean · perch

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. lean — thin
  3. spring — of water
  4. season — of the year
  5. cap — a hat
  6. spring — a coil
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. present — the time now
  9. file — a document
  10. file — a line of people
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — the fish
  13. land — a country
  14. spring — the season
  15. land — to come down
  16. land — ground
  17. cap — of ice
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. present — a gift
  20. cap — a lid
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. lean — to bend
  23. season — in sport
  24. present — there

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