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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. bass — low music
  3. march — music
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. root — of a plant
  8. bass — the fish
  9. cue — a hint
  10. cue — a signal
  11. root — the cause
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. scale — in music
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. file — a tool
  16. cue — for pool
  17. march — the month
  18. file — a line of people
  19. bear — the animal
  20. march — the month
  21. bear — the animal
  22. file — a document
  23. scale — size or range
  24. root — of a word

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