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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: spring · hide · rule · mark · board · date · wind · wound

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. board — a committee
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. wind — moving air
  11. mark — a trace
  12. date — the fruit
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. spring — a coil
  15. mark — a grade
  16. wind — moving air
  17. rule — government
  18. rule — a law
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. spring — the season
  21. board — to get on
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. wound — an injury

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