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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. pound — for dogs
  3. current — electric
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. band — a music group
  8. deal — to handle
  9. current — happening now
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. court — for sport
  12. band — a ring
  13. court — of law
  14. pitch — completely
  15. current — of water
  16. bass — the fish
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. pound — a weight
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. court — of a king
  24. pound — to hit hard

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