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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 120 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 fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. bass — low music
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. pit — in a race
  5. mate — a partner
  6. file — a document
  7. pit — a hole
  8. mate — a friend
  9. mate — to breed
  10. track — a path
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. track — a song
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. land — to come down
  15. file — a line of people
  16. land — a country
  17. track — to keep track
  18. sharp — clever
  19. land — ground
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. file — a tool
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. chair — a leader
  24. sharp — with an edge

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