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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. bass — the fish
  4. rule — a law
  5. race — the arms race
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. race — humankind
  8. degree — from a university
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. race — a contest
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. degree — temperature
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. deal — to handle
  18. bark — to shout
  19. rash — a series
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. degree — an amount
  23. rule — government
  24. rash — hasty

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