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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: spring · court · kid · saw · hide · rush · chair · bark

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. spring — the season
  3. saw — the tool
  4. rush — hurry
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. chair — a leader
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. court — of a king
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — child
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. spring — a coil
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. court — for sport
  16. spring — of water
  17. saw — the tool
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. bark — to shout
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. court — of law
  23. kid — to tease
  24. rush — a thrill

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