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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. rest — what's left
  3. bass — the fish
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. kick — in football
  6. mug — a face
  7. rest — what's left
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. rest — a break
  10. field — for sport
  11. drill — a practice
  12. scale — size or range
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. field — a subject
  16. capital — a city
  17. drill — army training
  18. mug — to rob
  19. bass — low music
  20. scale — in music
  21. field — farmland
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. capital — money
  24. drill — the tool

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