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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: prune · spring · degree · kid · coach · bay · last · bowl

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. kid — child
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. degree — from a university
  7. prune — to trim
  8. spring — of water
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. spring — a coil
  11. last — final
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. degree — temperature
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. degree — an amount
  18. last — finally
  19. kid — to tease
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. prune — to trim
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. last — to go on
  24. bowl — to roll

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