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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 120 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
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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: pop · racket · chest · wax · bass · pitch · vault · spring

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. spring — the season
  3. pop — soda
  4. pop — to visit
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bass — low music
  8. pitch — completely
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. spring — a coil
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. chest — of your body
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. wax — to grow
  17. chest — of your body
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. bass — the fish
  20. vault — a safe
  21. pop — music
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. chest — a box
  24. wax — in the ear

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