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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
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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: bat · bound · jam · court · spring · rush · cabinet · pitcher

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. spring — a coil
  3. court — of law
  4. spring — the season
  5. spring — of water
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. bound — tied together
  10. court — for sport
  11. bat — the animal
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. rush — hurry
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. bound — obliged
  17. bound — certain
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. court — of a king

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