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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.

Words on the sheet
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: fine · bowl · march · jam · fork · spring · pass · wound

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. march — music
  5. pass — a permit
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. fine — all right
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. spring — the season
  11. wound — an injury
  12. spring — a coil
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. march — the month
  16. march — the month
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. fork — in a road
  21. wound — an injury
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. spring — of water
  24. jam — in traffic

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