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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cabinet · bat · pop · stick · content · bay · spring · net

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. spring — a coil
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. pop — music
  7. spring — the season
  8. net — after costs
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. pop — soda
  12. pop — to visit
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. content — happy
  15. content — the amount
  16. net — for catching
  17. bat — the animal
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. spring — of water
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. net — in sport
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bat — for 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