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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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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: date · chair · rule · bass · pit · cell · spring · bowl

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. bass — low music
  3. spring — a coil
  4. cell — a phone
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. pit — in a race
  9. spring — the season
  10. pit — a hole
  11. bass — the fish
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. cell — in biology
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. spring — of water
  19. chair — a leader
  20. rule — government
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. rule — a law
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. bowl — to roll

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