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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. season — of the year
  4. hand — in cards
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. rest — what's left
  7. hand — help
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. rest — what's left
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. mine — for digging
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. rest — a break
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. season — in sport
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. bass — the fish
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. stand — to bear

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