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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. bass — the fish
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. cell — in biology
  6. squash — to crush
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. field — a subject
  9. fork — in a road
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. cell — a phone
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. field — for sport
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. squash — the sport
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. rock — a stone
  20. field — farmland
  21. content — happy
  22. bass — low music
  23. content — the amount
  24. vault — a safe

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