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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bass — the fish
  3. wind — moving air
  4. calf — of the leg
  5. swing — to play on
  6. fine — all right
  7. capital — a city
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. swing — in golf
  10. wind — moving air
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. swing — music
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. bass — low music
  17. cell — in biology
  18. stock — shares
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. capital — money
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. fine — high quality
  23. stock — goods
  24. cell — a phone

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