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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 120 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 ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. race — a contest
  4. bass — the fish
  5. chest — of your body
  6. club — for golf
  7. bass — low music
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. club — a group
  13. chest — a box
  14. rash — a series
  15. spring — the season
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. chest — of your body
  18. race — the arms race
  19. spring — of water
  20. race — humankind
  21. spring — a coil
  22. club — for dancing
  23. dip — to sink
  24. rash — hasty

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