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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. bear — the animal
  3. pop — music
  4. bear — the animal
  5. land — to come down
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. race — the arms race
  8. swing — to play on
  9. land — ground
  10. race — a contest
  11. swing — music
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — to rip
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. tear — from crying
  16. race — humankind
  17. stem — to come from
  18. bass — the fish
  19. pop — soda
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. land — a country
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. swing — in golf
  24. bass — low music

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