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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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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: present · season · clip · cell · patient · stick · bulb · spring

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. cell — in biology
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. spring — the season
  7. spring — of water
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. clip — to cut
  10. bulb — for light
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. spring — a coil
  14. present — there
  15. clip — for paper
  16. season — of the year
  17. cell — a phone
  18. clip — a video
  19. present — a gift
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. bulb — for light
  23. present — the time now
  24. patient — a sick person

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