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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: face · fine · spring · bass · cold · cell · bowl · toast

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. bass — low music
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. toast — bread
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. bass — the fish
  11. spring — the season
  12. spring — a coil
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. face — to point toward
  15. face — to confront
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cell — a phone
  19. spring — of water
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. face — part of the head
  24. fine — all right

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