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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 116 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: pitcher · fine · band · spring · cold · pass

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. cold — an illness
  3. spring — the season
  4. band — a music group
  5. fine — all right
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. spring — a coil
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. pass — a permit
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. spring — of water
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. band — a ring
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. cold — not warm

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