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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. last — finally
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. season — in sport
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. scale — size or range
  11. bass — low music
  12. wave — of the sea
  13. sharp — clever
  14. club — for golf
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. club — for dancing
  18. bass — the fish
  19. club — a group
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. scale — in music
  22. last — final
  23. season — of the year
  24. last — to go on

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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