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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. staff — a stick
  3. rush — hurry
  4. can — to be able to
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. can — a tin
  8. staff — employees
  9. branch — a division
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cell — in biology
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. can — a tin
  16. staff — employees
  17. field — a subject
  18. field — for sport
  19. bass — the fish
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. field — farmland
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. racket — for tennis

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