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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: pit · object · perch · hand · ground · bass · bank · spring

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. ground — crushed
  3. bank — for money
  4. object — to protest
  5. hand — in cards
  6. perch — the fish
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. ground — the earth
  9. bank — of a river
  10. bank — for money
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. spring — of water
  13. spring — a coil
  14. hand — help
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. object — an aim
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. bass — the fish
  20. pit — a hole
  21. ground — a position
  22. object — a thing
  23. pit — in a race
  24. spring — the season

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