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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. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. date — the fruit
  3. bass — the fish
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. chip — to eat
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. race — the arms race
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. key — for a lock
  14. key — in music
  15. key — the most important part
  16. chip — for betting
  17. race — humankind
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. race — a contest
  20. cold — not warm
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. cold — an illness
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. date — on the calendar

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