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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. squash — the sport
  3. court — of law
  4. lean — to bend
  5. land — a country
  6. land — ground
  7. land — to come down
  8. court — of a king
  9. squash — to crush
  10. lean — thin
  11. charge — a price
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. charge — electricity
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. plane — a tool
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. charge — in control
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. bass — the fish
  22. court — for sport
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. bass — the instrument

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