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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: wind · mug · bulb · band · cap · jam · spring · game

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. spring — the season
  5. bulb — for light
  6. cap — a hat
  7. spring — of water
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a match
  11. cap — a lid
  12. cap — of ice
  13. mug — a face
  14. band — a ring
  15. spring — a coil
  16. band — a music group
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bulb — for light
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. mug — to rob
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. mug — a cup

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