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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: lash · wake · rule · band · bass · ball · spring · cap

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. ball — a great time
  4. spring — a coil
  5. band — a music group
  6. cap — a lid
  7. cap — of ice
  8. band — a ring
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. spring — of water
  11. ball — a dance
  12. cap — a hat
  13. rule — government
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. spring — the season
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. bass — low music
  21. rule — a law
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. wake — a trail
  24. bass — the fish

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