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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 120 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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. land — ground
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. swing — music
  5. wax — to grow
  6. key — for a lock
  7. key — the most important part
  8. key — in music
  9. bank — for money
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. bank — of a river
  12. bank — for money
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. net — after costs
  15. land — a country
  16. bass — the fish
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. wound — an injury
  19. bass — low music
  20. net — for catching
  21. net — in sport
  22. wound — an injury
  23. land — to come down
  24. swing — in golf

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