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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. spell — letters
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. bass — low music
  6. roll — a cake
  7. capital — a city
  8. spell — a short time
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. capital — money
  11. present — the time now
  12. present — there
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. board — a committee
  15. board — to get on
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. bat — the animal
  18. roll — a list
  19. bass — the fish
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. spell — magic
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. present — a gift
  24. bass — the instrument

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