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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
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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: band · cabinet · current · chair · cap · bass · pitcher · spring

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. current — happening now
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. bass — low music
  6. band — a ring
  7. cap — of ice
  8. current — electric
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. spring — the season
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. bass — the fish
  13. spring — of water
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. current — of water
  18. band — a music group
  19. cap — a hat
  20. cap — a lid
  21. spring — a coil
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. pitcher — a jug

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