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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. rule — government
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. swing — in golf
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. pit — a hole
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. swing — to play on
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. bat — the animal
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. ground — crushed
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. swing — music
  17. wax — to grow
  18. bass — the fish
  19. ground — a position
  20. bass — low music
  21. pit — in a race
  22. rule — a law
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. ground — the earth

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