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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: bowl · tear · can · cabinet · bass · pit · pitcher · spring

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. can — a tin
  6. tear — from crying
  7. can — a tin
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. tear — from crying
  13. pit — in a race
  14. spring — of water
  15. pit — a hole
  16. bass — low music
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. bass — the fish
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. can — to be able to
  21. spring — the season
  22. tear — to rip
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. spring — a coil

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