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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.

Words on the sheet
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: ball · land · saw · mine · bass · bowl · jam · spring

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. land — a country
  3. spring — a coil
  4. ball — a dance
  5. ball — a great time
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. land — ground
  10. land — to come down
  11. bass — the fish
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. saw — the tool
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. mine — for digging
  20. spring — of water
  21. saw — the tool
  22. spring — the season
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. bass — low music

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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