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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. mug — to rob
  3. bass — low music
  4. firm — decided
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. mug — a face
  8. mine — for digging
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. bass — the fish
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. mug — a cup
  15. spell — magic
  16. band — a ring
  17. firm — steady
  18. scale — in music
  19. firm — a company
  20. scale — size or range
  21. spell — a short time
  22. band — a music group
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. mine — an explosive

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