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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. key — in music
  3. key — the most important part
  4. club — for golf
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. ground — crushed
  7. pitch — completely
  8. fork — in a road
  9. root — of a word
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. root — of a plant
  12. key — for a lock
  13. ground — the earth
  14. bass — the fish
  15. club — for dancing
  16. bass — low music
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. club — a group
  19. ground — a position
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. root — the cause

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