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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: season · bulb · chest · fork · mouse · shower · march · spring

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. march — music
  3. spring — of water
  4. season — in sport
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. march — the month
  7. spring — a coil
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. chest — a box
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. shower — rain
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. chest — of your body
  15. shower — to wash
  16. bulb — for light
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. fork — in a road
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. season — of the year
  21. bulb — for light
  22. march — the month
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. chest — of your body

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