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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. field — farmland
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. field — a subject
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. bound — obliged
  7. dip — to sink
  8. bass — the fish
  9. bound — tied together
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. field — for sport
  12. bound — certain
  13. row — a line
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. pound — a weight
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. row — to paddle
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. mouse — the animal

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