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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. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. rock — music
  5. ball — a great time
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. bass — the fish
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. pound — a weight
  11. pass — a permit
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. band — a ring
  14. rock — a stone
  15. ball — a dance
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. scale — in music
  18. scale — size or range
  19. hand — help
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. band — a music group
  22. bass — low music
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. hand — in cards

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