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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 players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. degree — an amount
  3. swing — music
  4. bass — low music
  5. pop — music
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. bass — the fish
  9. swing — in golf
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. pop — to visit
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. rest — a break
  15. swing — to play on
  16. degree — temperature
  17. rest — what's left
  18. pop — soda
  19. rest — what's left
  20. kick — in football
  21. mark — a grade
  22. pitch — completely
  23. degree — from a university
  24. mark — a trace

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