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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. suit — in cards
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. bass — low music
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. march — music
  10. spring — a coil
  11. march — the month
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bass — the fish
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. spring — the season
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. march — the month
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. wound — an injury
  20. suit — to fit
  21. bat — the animal
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. suit — clothes
  24. mouse — 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