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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. race — humankind
  3. pop — music
  4. bass — low music
  5. cap — of ice
  6. race — a contest
  7. spell — letters
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. pop — soda
  11. prune — to trim
  12. spell — magic
  13. row — a line
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pop — to visit
  16. row — to paddle
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. race — the arms race
  19. cap — a hat
  20. prune — to trim
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. spell — a short time
  23. cap — a lid
  24. row — a quarrel

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