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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 116 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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. bass — the fish
  4. march — the month
  5. bass — low music
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. pit — a hole
  9. bat — the animal
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. pit — in a race
  16. tube — a container
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. march — music
  19. march — the month
  20. kick — in football
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. prune — to trim
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. prune — to trim

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