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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: rush · pop · stick · fan · spring · cell · pitch · roll

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. pop — music
  3. cell — a phone
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. spring — the season
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. roll — a cake
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. pop — soda
  10. pop — to visit
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. roll — a list
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. cell — in biology
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. spring — a coil
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. rush — hurry
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. pitch — completely
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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