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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 water is too ________________.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. present — the time now
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. firm — a company
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. land — to come down
  8. present — a gift
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. bass — the fish
  12. present — there
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. cold — an illness
  15. kid — child
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. firm — steady
  18. plane — a tool
  19. land — a country
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. kid — to tease
  22. firm — decided
  23. bass — low music
  24. land — ground

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