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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: season · safe · last · spring · bass · calf · mine · straw

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. bass — low music
  4. spring — a coil
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. season — in sport
  8. season — of the year
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. mine — for digging
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. spring — the season
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. last — finally
  19. bass — the fish
  20. last — to go on
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. spring — of water
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. bass — the instrument

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