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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: stick · row · bass · game · bulb · rash · club · spring

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. bass — low music
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. spring — of water
  5. game — a match
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. rash — hasty
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. spring — a coil
  11. club — for golf
  12. bass — the fish
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. club — for dancing
  15. row — a line
  16. game — wild animals
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. club — a group
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. bulb — for light
  21. rash — a series
  22. bulb — for light
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. row — to paddle

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