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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. row — a line
  4. wake — a trail
  5. field — for sport
  6. row — to paddle
  7. degree — an amount
  8. fork — in a road
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. field — farmland
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. field — a subject
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. degree — temperature
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. bass — the fish
  22. degree — from a university
  23. pound — a weight
  24. bass — low 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