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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: ball · branch · pitcher · cap · bass · chair · fall · field

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. fall — the season
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. field — for sport
  6. field — farmland
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. fall — to drop
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. cap — a lid
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. branch — a division
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. chair — a leader
  15. bass — low music
  16. fall — to drop
  17. cap — of ice
  18. cap — a hat
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. field — a subject
  23. bass — the fish
  24. ball — a dance

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