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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. shower — rain
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. pop — soda
  6. pop — music
  7. bass — low music
  8. content — the amount
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. content — happy
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. pit — in a race
  15. bass — the fish
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. scale — size or range
  18. fine — all right
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. shower — to wash
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pit — a hole
  24. scale — in music

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