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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. race — humankind
  3. pop — music
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. race — a contest
  7. scale — size or range
  8. last — final
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. capital — money
  13. race — the arms race
  14. bass — the fish
  15. pop — soda
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. last — to go on
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. pop — to visit
  20. bass — low music
  21. rash — hasty
  22. scale — in music
  23. last — finally
  24. capital — a city

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