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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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. present — there
  4. bass — the fish
  5. present — a gift
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. bass — low music
  10. branch — a division
  11. date — the fruit
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. march — music
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. march — the month
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. sharp — clever
  18. present — the time now
  19. swing — music
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. ball — a great time
  22. swing — in golf
  23. swing — to play on
  24. march — the month

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