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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: spring · bear · pass · hand · track · last · present · scale

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. scale — size or range
  3. present — there
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. last — to go on
  8. spring — the season
  9. track — to keep track
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. scale — in music
  12. spring — a coil
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. hand — help
  15. last — finally
  16. track — a path
  17. present — a gift
  18. track — a song
  19. spring — of water
  20. pass — a permit
  21. hand — in cards
  22. last — final
  23. present — the time now
  24. bear — the animal

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