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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. There's no middle ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bass — the fish
  4. firm — steady
  5. firm — a company
  6. tube — a container
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. ground — crushed
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. mine — for digging
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. band — a music group
  14. bass — low music
  15. firm — decided
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. ground — the earth
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. tube — the underground
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. band — a ring

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