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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. land — to come down
  3. chip — to eat
  4. last — final
  5. drill — a practice
  6. sharp — clever
  7. last — finally
  8. land — ground
  9. last — to go on
  10. bass — the fish
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. bass — low music
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. drill — army training
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. drill — the tool
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. chip — for betting
  19. pit — in a race
  20. land — a country
  21. pitch — completely
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. pit — a hole
  24. sharp — with an edge

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