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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: spring · mouse · season · chest · plane · cabinet · kid · bark

  1. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. The ________________ took off on time.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. season — of the year
  3. chest — a box
  4. kid — to tease
  5. bark — to shout
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. chest — of your body
  8. plane — a tool
  9. spring — the season
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. chest — of your body
  14. season — in sport
  15. spring — a coil
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. plane — an aircraft
  18. spring — of water
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. kid — child

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