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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. spring — the season
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. bass — low music
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. face — part of the head
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. spring — of water
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. suit — clothes
  12. suit — to fit
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. band — a ring
  16. spring — a coil
  17. band — a music group
  18. prune — to trim
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. face — to point toward
  21. bat — the animal
  22. prune — to trim
  23. face — to confront
  24. suit — in cards

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