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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. scale — size or range
  3. scale — in music
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. branch — a division
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. clip — a video
  11. bass — the fish
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. lean — thin
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. toast — bread
  17. bat — the animal
  18. clip — to cut
  19. stand — to bear
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. bass — low music
  22. lean — to bend
  23. clip — for paper
  24. branch — of a tree

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