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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 band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. row — a line
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. land — a country
  7. net — in sport
  8. bass — low music
  9. ball — a great time
  10. land — ground
  11. fine — high quality
  12. fine — all right
  13. march — the month
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. row — to paddle
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. bass — the fish
  20. net — for catching
  21. ball — a dance
  22. march — the month
  23. net — after costs
  24. land — to come down

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