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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 116 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 · pitcher · cap · content · net · branch · wave · squash

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. net — for catching
  3. cap — a lid
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. net — after costs
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. spring — the season
  12. cap — a hat
  13. branch — a division
  14. spring — a coil
  15. cap — of ice
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. content — happy
  18. squash — to crush
  19. content — the amount
  20. squash — the sport
  21. net — in sport
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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