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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. fine — all right
  3. spring — the season
  4. rash — hasty
  5. row — a line
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bear — the animal
  10. spring — of water
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. ground — crushed
  15. fine — high quality
  16. rash — a series
  17. spring — a coil
  18. row — to paddle
  19. scale — size or range
  20. ground — a position
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. ground — the earth

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