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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. bass — the fish
  5. club — a group
  6. club — for dancing
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. scale — in music
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. stem — to come from
  11. kick — in football
  12. scale — size or range
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. content — the amount
  16. content — happy
  17. foot — a measure
  18. club — for golf
  19. capital — a city
  20. capital — money
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. capital — a big letter

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