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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: spell · hand · jam · prune · racket · cold · bass · bulb

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. bass — low music
  6. spell — letters
  7. bulb — for light
  8. bulb — for light
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. hand — in cards
  11. cold — not warm
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. spell — a short time
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. hand — help
  17. cold — an illness
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. spell — magic
  20. prune — to trim
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. bass — the fish
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. prune — to trim

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