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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: spring · plane · bowl · pitcher · wake · mine · coach · jam

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. mine — for digging
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. spring — of water
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. plane — a tool
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. spring — the season
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. wake — a trail
  23. spring — a coil
  24. jam — in traffic

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