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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: march · fan · staff · bowl · wound · spring · bore · can

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. can — a tin
  4. can — to be able to
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. spring — of water
  9. bore — to drill
  10. march — the month
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wound — an injury
  13. staff — a stick
  14. march — music
  15. can — a tin
  16. wound — an injury
  17. staff — employees
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. spring — a coil
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. march — the month
  22. spring — the season
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. staff — employees

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