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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. rest — what's left
  3. ball — a dance
  4. march — music
  5. swing — music
  6. rule — government
  7. ball — a great time
  8. rule — a law
  9. swing — in golf
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. spring — a coil
  12. spring — of water
  13. scale — in music
  14. bass — the fish
  15. rest — a break
  16. rest — what's left
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. spring — the season
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. scale — size or range
  22. bass — low music
  23. march — the month
  24. march — the month

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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