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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. drill — the tool
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. capital — a city
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. current — of water
  8. mark — a trace
  9. capital — money
  10. drill — a practice
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. drill — army training
  13. club — for dancing
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. bass — low music
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. current — happening now
  19. mark — a grade
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. club — a group
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. current — electric
  24. club — for golf

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