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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. firm — decided
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. cold — an illness
  6. mate — a friend
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. pop — to visit
  9. mate — a partner
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. mate — to breed
  15. branch — a division
  16. firm — steady
  17. pop — soda
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. rock — a stone
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. bat — the animal
  22. cold — not warm
  23. rock — music
  24. firm — a company

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