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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. season — in sport
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. scale — in music
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. rush — hurry
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. rash — a series
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. rash — hasty
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. season — of the year
  17. key — the most important part
  18. bass — the fish
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. pitch — completely
  21. key — for a lock
  22. scale — size or range
  23. bass — low music
  24. bat — the animal

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