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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.

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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: game · leaves · prune · bowl · cap · rush · bore · spring

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. game — wild animals
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. bore — to drill
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. prune — to trim
  11. cap — a hat
  12. game — a match
  13. spring — a coil
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. rush — hurry
  16. cap — of ice
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. prune — to trim
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. cap — a lid
  21. spring — the season
  22. spring — of water
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. leaves — lets stay

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