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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. kid — child
  3. bass — low music
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. bass — the fish
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. chair — a leader
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. last — to go on
  10. sharp — clever
  11. court — for sport
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. kid — to tease
  14. bound — tied together
  15. bound — obliged
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. foot — a measure
  19. court — of a king
  20. last — finally
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. court — of law
  23. last — final
  24. bound — certain

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