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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. land — to come down
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. bass — low music
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. spell — a short time
  10. spell — magic
  11. land — ground
  12. shower — to wash
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. shower — rain
  15. spell — letters
  16. land — a country
  17. charge — in control
  18. charge — electricity
  19. bass — the fish
  20. charge — a price
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. mine — for digging
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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