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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. bass — low music
  3. pop — music
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. pop — to visit
  7. mine — for digging
  8. cell — in biology
  9. can — a tin
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. pit — in a race
  12. bass — the fish
  13. cell — a phone
  14. race — humankind
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. race — a contest
  17. can — to be able to
  18. pit — a hole
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. can — a tin
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. pop — soda
  24. race — the arms race

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