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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. mate — to breed
  3. bass — the fish
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. mine — for digging
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. mate — a partner
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. rash — hasty
  15. march — music
  16. dip — to sink
  17. mate — a friend
  18. rash — a series
  19. fine — all right
  20. fine — high quality
  21. march — the month
  22. march — the month
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. trunk — of a tree

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