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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 120 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: face · spring · field · ball · chip · bulb · drill · spell

  1. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to point toward
  2. spell — a short time
  3. spring — the season
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. spell — magic
  6. spring — a coil
  7. bulb — for light
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. ball — a great time
  10. face — part of the head
  11. chip — to eat
  12. field — a subject
  13. drill — a practice
  14. bulb — for light
  15. spell — letters
  16. face — to confront
  17. spring — of water
  18. ball — a dance
  19. drill — the tool
  20. field — farmland
  21. drill — army training
  22. chip — for betting
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. field — for sport

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