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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cabinet · mate · rash · spring · bass · stock · pitch · date

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. stock — goods
  4. spring — a coil
  5. mate — to breed
  6. date — the fruit
  7. stock — shares
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. bass — the fish
  12. spring — of water
  13. rash — hasty
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. mate — a partner
  18. spring — the season
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. rash — a series
  21. pitch — completely
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. bass — low music

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