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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: bark · season · march · bass · spring · press · rock · snap

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. spring — the season
  5. press — to push
  6. spring — a coil
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. rock — a stone
  9. rock — music
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. press — a publisher
  12. season — of the year
  13. bass — the fish
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. march — music
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. season — in sport
  18. bass — low music
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. march — the month
  21. march — the month
  22. press — newspapers
  23. bark — to shout
  24. snap — to click

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