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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: kid · firm · capital · suit · bass · cell · spring · stock

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. bass — the fish
  4. firm — a company
  5. capital — money
  6. kid — to tease
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. kid — child
  9. suit — clothes
  10. suit — to fit
  11. bass — low music
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. firm — decided
  14. spring — the season
  15. stock — shares
  16. cell — a phone
  17. suit — in cards
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. cell — in biology
  20. stock — goods
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. spring — of water
  23. capital — a city
  24. firm — steady

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