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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. land — ground
  4. bass — low music
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. land — a country
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. fall — to drop
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. pitch — completely
  15. bass — the fish
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. fall — the season
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. rule — a law
  20. fall — to drop
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. rule — government
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. land — to come down

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