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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: cold · fan · nail · bass · bear · rock · racket · spring

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. bass — the fish
  3. rock — music
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. bass — low music
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. spring — of water
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. spring — the season
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. cold — an illness
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. bear — the animal
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. rock — a stone
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. cold — not warm
  24. spring — a coil

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