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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: trunk · spring · can · season · last · court · saw · bulb

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. spring — of water
  3. court — for sport
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. season — of the year
  6. bulb — for light
  7. spring — a coil
  8. court — of law
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. can — to be able to
  11. bulb — for light
  12. saw — the tool
  13. can — a tin
  14. last — finally
  15. last — to go on
  16. can — a tin
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. saw — the tool
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. court — of a king
  22. last — final
  23. spring — the season
  24. bulb — of a plant

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