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

  1. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. bass — the fish
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. capital — a city
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bass — low music
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. capital — money
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. field — farmland
  12. foot — a measure
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. field — for sport
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. field — a subject
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. foot — the bottom

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