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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. face — part of the head
  3. scale — in music
  4. rash — hasty
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. firm — steady
  8. net — for catching
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. net — after costs
  11. bass — the fish
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. rash — a series
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. scale — size or range
  16. bass — low music
  17. race — a contest
  18. firm — a company
  19. face — to confront
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. race — the arms race
  22. net — in sport
  23. face — to point toward
  24. race — humankind

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