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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. date — the fruit
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. scale — size or range
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. bass — the fish
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. field — farmland
  14. bass — low music
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. degree — from a university
  17. degree — an amount
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. degree — temperature
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. scale — in music
  22. field — a subject
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. field — for sport

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