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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: patient · cabinet · bat · firm · spring · dip · bass · game

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  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. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. firm — decided
  4. spring — of water
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. game — a match
  7. spring — the season
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. bass — low music
  12. firm — a company
  13. game — wild animals
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. firm — steady
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. dip — to sink
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. bat — the animal
  23. bass — the fish
  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