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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. face — to point toward
  3. current — electric
  4. cell — in biology
  5. scale — size or range
  6. current — of water
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. current — happening now
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. bass — the fish
  11. spell — magic
  12. stand — to bear
  13. spell — letters
  14. sharp — clever
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. face — to confront
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. spell — a short time
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. cell — a phone
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. scale — in music
  24. face — part of the head

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