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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: spring · mug · club · ball · fine · bass · firm · cold

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. ball — a dance
  3. fine — high quality
  4. spring — a coil
  5. cold — not warm
  6. fine — all right
  7. club — for golf
  8. firm — decided
  9. mug — a cup
  10. mug — to rob
  11. firm — steady
  12. bass — low music
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. ball — a great time
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. mug — a face
  17. club — a group
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. club — for dancing
  20. spring — of water
  21. cold — an illness
  22. firm — a company
  23. bass — the fish
  24. cold — the Cold War

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