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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: last · season · spring · ground · safe · clip · key · trunk

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. clip — for paper
  3. season — in sport
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. key — in music
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. ground — crushed
  9. season — of the year
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. spring — a coil
  12. key — the most important part
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. ground — a position
  16. last — finally
  17. spring — the season
  18. clip — to cut
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. clip — a video
  21. last — final
  22. key — for a lock
  23. spring — of water
  24. last — to go on

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