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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. swing — to play on
  4. bass — low music
  5. charge — a price
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. cap — a lid
  8. charge — electricity
  9. scale — in music
  10. cap — of ice
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. swing — in golf
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. bass — the fish
  15. scale — size or range
  16. charge — in control
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. swing — music
  19. fine — all right
  20. fine — high quality
  21. row — to paddle
  22. row — a line
  23. kid — child
  24. cap — a hat

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