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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. pit — in a race
  3. bass — low music
  4. rash — hasty
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. degree — temperature
  7. row — a line
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. bass — the fish
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. degree — from a university
  13. row — to paddle
  14. pop — soda
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. rash — a series
  18. season — of the year
  19. degree — an amount
  20. season — in sport
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. pop — to visit
  24. pop — music

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