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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: jam · spell · date · wake · spring · shower · bass · field

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. bass — the fish
  3. shower — rain
  4. field — a subject
  5. spring — a coil
  6. spell — a short time
  7. bass — low music
  8. wake — a trail
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. spring — of water
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. field — for sport
  14. spell — magic
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. spring — the season
  19. shower — to wash
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. date — the fruit
  23. spell — letters
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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