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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: bass · object · wind · fall · bear · game · degree · spring

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  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. spring — the season
  2. game — a match
  3. fall — the season
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bass — low music
  7. fall — to drop
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bass — the fish
  10. degree — an amount
  11. wind — moving air
  12. object — an aim
  13. fall — to drop
  14. game — wild animals
  15. object — a thing
  16. degree — from a university
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. object — to protest
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. degree — temperature
  21. bear — the animal
  22. spring — of water
  23. game — a kind of play
  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