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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 120 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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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: row · spring · pit · pound · bark · deal · bass · cell

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. bass — the fish
  4. pit — a hole
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. cell — a phone
  7. spring — a coil
  8. row — to paddle
  9. pound — a weight
  10. cell — in biology
  11. bark — to shout
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. spring — of water
  15. row — a line
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. deal — to handle
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. bass — low music
  20. spring — the season
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. pit — in a race

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