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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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468
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: bass · spring · kid · cabinet · pitch · bulb · coach · row

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. bulb — for light
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. spring — of water
  5. bass — low music
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. row — to paddle
  9. row — a line
  10. kid — child
  11. spring — a coil
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. bulb — for light
  18. pitch — completely
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. spring — the season
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. bass — the fish

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