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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. land — ground
  3. firm — steady
  4. bass — low music
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. present — the time now
  7. firm — a company
  8. present — there
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — child
  11. plane — a tool
  12. land — to come down
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. land — a country
  16. kid — to tease
  17. present — a gift
  18. 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