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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. rash — a series
  3. rash — hasty
  4. mate — a friend
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. pit — a hole
  7. root — of a plant
  8. march — the month
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. mate — to breed
  12. pop — music
  13. march — music
  14. pop — to visit
  15. pit — in a race
  16. mate — a partner
  17. march — the month
  18. root — the cause
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. root — of a word
  23. bass — low music
  24. pop — soda

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