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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. bass — low music
  3. club — a group
  4. clip — to cut
  5. pop — music
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. clip — for paper
  10. lean — thin
  11. jam — in traffic
  12. clip — a video
  13. pop — to visit
  14. club — for dancing
  15. saw — the tool
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. degree — from a university
  18. degree — an amount
  19. club — for golf
  20. degree — temperature
  21. saw — the tool
  22. pop — soda
  23. bass — the fish
  24. lean — to bend

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